Atascadero standoff suspect is identified
The man taken into custody Sunday afternoon after a standoff in which he reportedly fired three shots in an Atascadero neighborhood was identified Monday as John Floyd Jones.
On Monday, Jones, 53, remained in custody at San Luis Obispo County Jail in lieu of $500,000 bail.
Jones has also been placed on a mental health hold and will be evaluated by San Luis Obispo County Mental Health staff prior to being released, according to Atascadero Police Department Sgt. Joe Allen.
On Sunday morning, officers responded to an apartment near the corner of Santa Ysabel and Curbaril avenues after receiving a report of a person in mental distress. The man didn’t meet the criteria for a hold and had someone to take care of him, Allen said.
About 11:29 a.m., dispatchers received a call from the subject’s girlfriend, reporting that he had a gun. When officers arrived, three gunshots were heard coming from the apartment. The gunshots did not appear to be directed at the law enforcement officials, Allen said.
Officers set up a perimeter and made Reverse 911 calls to neighborhood residents, evacuating those they could.
Jones initially did not come out of the apartment but eventually surrendered after police used an armored personnel vehicle from the Sheriff’s Office to move closer and continued negotiating using the PA system in the vehicle.
Jones was taken into custody without any further incident, Allen said.
Jones was booked on suspicion of two felonies: assault with a deadly weapon and shooting at an inhabited dwelling, according to jail logs.
As of Monday, no court date had yet been scheduled.
Tribune staff writer Danielle Ames contributed to this report.
This story was originally published December 21, 2015 at 11:20 AM with the headline "Atascadero standoff suspect is identified."