Annapolis Man Jailed For Police Standoff After Hospital Release

ANNAPOLIS, MD — An Annapolis man who likely hallucinated after taking drugs and then was barricaded in a house with a gun for almost 22 hours is being held at the Jennifer Road Detention Center on no bond. Anne Arundel County Police say Samuel Irvin Miller, 35, of the 600 block of Red Cedar Road, was released from the hospital on Tuesday and arrested on more than a dozen criminal charges. He was taken to the police station to be formally charged and booked.

The standoff began about 5:30 p.m. Feb. 19 in the 600 block of Red Cedar Road in the Whitehall Beach area, and Miller was still in communication with police much of the following day. Officers first received a report that someone had overdosed at the home, or may have been suicidal. Miller was taken into custody about 3 p.m. on Feb. 20.

The arrest warrant charges Miller with five counts of first-degree assault, five counts of second-degree assault, reckless endangerment, malicious destruction of property over $1,000, discharging a firearm, and other related charges. Police say the assault victims are the five officers who were allegedly shot at by Miller during the standoff while the destruction of property charge stems from the damage done to police equipment when shots were fired at officers.

Police say Miller called 911 and told a dispatcher that he was home alone and had taken illegal drugs. He began talking irrationally and making statements that made police believe he was having hallucinations. As officers and fire department personnel arrived at the residence, the man told the emergency dispatcher that he had a gun and continued to make irrational statements.

Officers set up a perimeter around the residence and confirmed that no one else was inside the house. After several failed attempts to persuade Miller to leave the residence, the department's Quick Response Team was dispatched. As officers were talking to the resident via cell phone, he fired several gun shots, reportedly at officers outside the residence.

Crisis negotiators continued their efforts throughout the day, and about 3 p.m. the shooter was taken into custody. No officers were injured during the standoff, police said.

Image of Samuel Irvin Miller courtesy of Anne Arundel County Police