Flagler County

Palm Coast woman shoots herself after holding family at gunpoint, deputies say

FLAGLER COUNTY, Fla. — An armed stand off with deputies in Flagler County ended with a woman taking her own life after holding her family at gunpoint, deputies said.

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The seven-hour stand off started just before 8 a.m. on Emerald Lake Drive in the Palm Coast Plantation in Flagler County.

Deputies said they were called to a home for an “armed domestic violence situation.”

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Deputies said the husband was initially held at gunpoint by the woman, but he and a child were rescued by deputies shortly after the stand off began.

Photos: Palm Coast woman shoots herself after holding family at gunpoint, deputies say

However, for the next several hours, attempts to communicate with the armed woman were unsuccessful.

Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly and deputies, Flagler County Sheriff’s Office SWAT and crisis negotiation units worked with Flagler County Fire-Rescue, Palm Coast Fire Department and Palm Coast Technology throughout the day at the scene in an attempt to de-escalate the situation.

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“She was refusing to communicate. So, we used our robot, drones and other technology in hopes of communicating with her,” Staly added. “Based on our technology, we observed her holding the gun in a suicidal manner. We knew from the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office in a prior nine-hour standoff with her that she would not communicate, and a tactical resolution would be the only solution.”

Deputies said because of the threat to the neighborhood, and her lack of communication with crisis negotiators, gas was deployed.

Deputies said they used non-lethal weapons to try and disarm her, but she shot herself in front of the deputies while in the home’s pool around 3 p.m.

Officials said deputies immediately pulled her from the pool and began first aid.

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Flagler Fire-Rescue paramedics took her to Advent Health-Palm Coast, and she was later flown to the Halifax Health Medical Center in Daytona Beach where she would die from her self-inflicted injury, deputies said.

“We did all we could to end this incident peacefully without injury,” Staly said. “I’m proud of our team that did everything they could to resolve this situation peacefully. This is not the outcome we were hoping for. But in these situations, we do not control the outcome. Fortunately, no deputies, neighbors or the family members were injured during this almost eight-hour incident. Our prayers go out to the family as this is a sad and difficult time for everyone involved.”

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