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Barricaded situation in Cloverdale has been defused

Friday, June 19, 2015 ~ Updated 11:29 PM
By Sabrina Westfall, Staff Writer
Amanda Patty and baby daughter are led away from Appliance Guy store in Cloverdale early Friday morning. (Courtesy of Indiana State Police)

CLOVERDALE -- After almost 15 hours of police negotiating with a 33-year-old Cloverdale man, the barricaded situation on Market Street was finally defused early Friday morning.

Indiana State Police hostage negotiators spent much of the second half of Thursday and the early morning hours of Friday trying to talk James Kirby out of his Market Street apartment, located in the Appliance Guy store.

The situation started around 2 p.m. Thursday when a Putnam County Department of Child Services investigator attempted to have Kirby and Amanda Patty, 31, comply with a court order regarding their two-week-old daughter.

James Kirby

During the encounter at the residence, the DCS investigator had gone inside the apartment to investigate the child welfare concern as police officers remained outside. Kirby allegedly brandished a weapon. At that time, the DCS investigator and police backed out of the apartment.

Meanwhile, Kirby barricaded himself and his family in the residence.

The Indiana State Police was contacted to assist with the situation. ISP SWAT and hostage negotiators continued speaking with Kirby until the early morning hours. Indiana State Police Public Information Officer Sgt. Joe Watts said there was open communication between officers and Kirby during the course of the event.

Just before 5 a.m. Friday, Putnam County Sheriff Scott Stockton confirmed the situation had been defused. Two handguns were recovered at the scene.

Kirby was lodged in the Putnam County Jail and charged with resisting law enforcement with a weapon, criminal confinement and neglect of a dependent.

As of Friday afternoon, investigators had not charged Patty in the incident and the information was forwarded to the Putnam County Prosecutor's Office for review.

The infant was transported by Putnam County Operation Life to Putnam County Hospital for evaluation. After the evaluation, the Putnam Circuit Court will determine placement of the infant.

Sgt. Watts said the situation was initially handled as a hostage situation. Because a weapon had allegedly been shown, it was believed Amanda Patty and their daughter were not allowed to leave the home. After a couple of hours on scene, the status was changed to a barricaded situation.

"As we established a communication, we did not have reason to believe she (Patty) was being held against her will, but they were barricaded in the apartment," Watts explained.

Cloverdale Police Department and the Putnam County Sheriff's Department responded as well as the ISP SWAT team. ISP hostage negotiations lasted into the morning hours, when Kirby finally surrendered around 4:45 a.m.

Sgt. Watts said it was important for officers and the negotiators to take their time in a situation such as this because all lives matter.

"We had no reason to believe anyone was in severe jeopardy. We just want to make sure everyone was safe," Watts said, noting the concern was for the suspect, his family and all officers involved.

Sheriff Stockton said partnering and cooperating with other agencies made this extremely tense situation result in a positive outcome. He stressed his thanks to the ISP, Cloverdale Fire Department, Operation Life, Greencastle Police Department for the use of their mobile command center, as well as the citizens for their patience through the trying event.

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  • I hope the courts get this man some help. The next time could be much worse. Time bomb waiting to happen.

    -- Posted by becker on Fri, Jun 19, 2015, at 2:18 PM

  • 1. Man brandishes weapon after government enters house. (we still don't know if they had the legal basis for such an activity)

    2. Police escalate situation with riot gear and increased firepower.

    3. Man gives up.

    4. Police charge him with "resisting law enforcement".

    Submit to the police state or find yourself in jail.

    -- Posted by daisy48 on Fri, Jun 19, 2015, at 7:40 PM

  • Steps 2 to 3 took 15 hours of subject refusing to release hostages, hence step 4. No conspiracy here, just good police work.

    -- Posted by Geologist on Sat, Jun 20, 2015, at 6:20 AM

  • When people practice traditional family values, i.e. a man & a woman marry, they have more rights. When they do not marry, or stay married, the state will step in to oversee the children's welfare.

    Pretty sure these people are not married. So, we are already paying for her to deliver her babies, etc.

    He is not the dad of all these children, so, no, he does not get to decide about their welfare. And, these are just the known facts.

    -- Posted by letspulltogether on Sat, Jun 20, 2015, at 10:11 AM

  • Yes he does need help. He physically abused his other two children, and held his ex hostage as well.

    -- Posted by Wastintime on Thu, Jun 25, 2015, at 7:22 AM

  • Wow people don't have the facts straight

    Two hand guns Plastic bb guns unloaded lol.......................... Indiana state police like to lie just like Cloverdale Police

    -- Posted by fred williams on Fri, Jul 24, 2015, at 11:28 AM

  • Just so everyone knows

    They did not have any legal ground to take baby

    Man defends family as he has that right to do

    Putnam County Prosecutor has already released him and Believes DCS has no cause to take the actions they took. Appliance Guy store is 24 7 Video taped. The mother in case has baby and Both him and her are still Together. This man did nothing Criminal.....................

    -- Posted by fred williams on Fri, Jul 24, 2015, at 11:35 AM

  • @fred williams ... regardless of whether the weapons were BBguns or not, they are weapons. When you point a weapon at someone, you (typically) have the intent to do harm or worse.

    So, your ignorance at whether the police had the "right" to be there is just that. When the police are asked by CPS to accompany them to a home, it stands to reason it is because of safety.

    This man was not "defending" his family, but taking them hostage, as the article indicates. He deserves to have his children taken away if he behaves like this.

    -- Posted by Emmes on Mon, Jul 27, 2015, at 10:55 AM

  • The problem with CPS and judges is that they keep giving these kids back to their worthless parents. THAT is what's criminal.

    -- Posted by Emmes on Mon, Jul 27, 2015, at 10:56 AM

  • In no report was it over told that he pointed gun at them or held anyone against there will.

    Again no legal grounds to remove child and no warrant was ever serve for cops to be in his place of business or even be able to legally take this unhurt child away from a hard working family.

    People should understand the news will report one thing but then there's the truth..

    There's a whole another truth to this case that no one knows...

    -- Posted by fred williams on Fri, Aug 7, 2015, at 3:33 PM
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