Portsmouth Man Arrested After Overnight Standoff, Police Say

PORTSMOUTH, RI -- A 39-year-old Portsmouth man is being charged with felony assault with a dangerous weapon, police said.

James Lawrence, 39, surrendered this morning at 6:30 a.m. after a standoff that started around 9:10 last night.

That's when officers responded to a home on Boyds Lane for a complaint about a man threatening two women with a firearm.

According to the police press release, one of the women told them she was a friend of the suspect's girlfriend While helping her try to retrieve her keys inside the home, she was confronted by the suspect, who was described as "upset and intoxicated."

He reportedly loaded a firearm and threatened both woman and "anyone who messed with him," police said.

When the Portsmouth police attempted to talk to him, he would not answer the door and turned off all the house lights.

Ultimately, he did surrender peacefully to the state police tactical unit, police said.

Lawrence is due this morning in Newport District Court to answer the charge.

Photo courtesy of Portsmouth Police