Newburgh Standoff Becomes Chaotic Scene Before Police Subdue Suspect
NEWBURGH, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- There was a dramatic end to a tense standoff Wednesday involving a wanted man in Orange County.
Suspect Gosford Lembhard jumped out a window and fled towards the front of the house in which he had been holed up in for ten hours.
Heavily armed U.S. Marshals came to arrest Lembhard Wednesday morning in Newburgh on a fugitive warrant. He is wanted for attempted murder.
As police rushed to take him down, family members ran to his aid, creating a chaotic and tense situation. Everyone inside with Lembhard got out safely, including his 10-year-old niece.
"He knew if he could get to us, we were going to make sure he wasn't hurt...and that happened. That's why the whole family rushed the gate the way we did. March 7 is not gonna happen again," the suspect's aunt Juanita King told CBS 2's Tony Aiello.
In March, Lembhard's brother, Michael, was shot and killed by Newburgh Police after rushing at two officers with a knife.
Tensions between police and the community have been high, but a lawyer representing the Lembhards had praise for how police handled Wednesday's standoff.
"We have this exercise of police restraint and excellent leadership by the police chief in trying to get the situation resolved peacefully," said Lembhard Family Attorney Michael Sussman.
Police said they were willing to wait as long as it took for Gosford Lembhard to give himself up. It took authorities about 15 minutes to subdue him.
Sussman said Lembhard never considered the incident to be a hostage situation and said those in the house with him were there voluntarily.
Sussman said he talked to Lembhard repeatedly throughout the day.
He faces charges of attempted murder for trying to shoot at a group of people in Newburgh, Aiello reported.
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