Details Emerge In Sunnyvale Standoff, Police Shooting; Suspect Identified
SUNNYVALE (CBS SF) – Authorities in Sunnyvale have released additional details about an hours-long standoff involving an elder abuse suspect and a police shooting on Wednesday.
Officers were called to the 400 block of Pala Avenue shortly after 3:20 p.m. following a report of a felony battery of an elderly woman.
According to the Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety, the victim was struck by her adult son. When officers arrived, they were told that the suspect was armed with a handgun.
Officers brought the victim and another person at the home to safety. Police said the victim was treated at a local hospital and released, while the other resident was not injured.
The suspect retreated to the rear of the home and refused to surrender. Crisis negotiators from the Department of Public Safety and the Santa Clara County Mobile Crisis Response Team were brought in to talk with the suspect.
Police said during negotiations, the suspect showed himself from inside the home and pointed the handgun at officers in what they described as "a threatening manner."
"Officers discharged their weapons, in defense of their lives, and the suspect retreated back into the rear of the residence," the Department of Public Safety said in a statement.
No injuries were reported from the shooting.
Negotiations continued for about seven hours, police said. The suspect, identified as 55-year-old Richard Chavoya, surrendered to authorities around 10:30 p.m.
Chavoya was booked into the Santa Clara County Main Jail on charges of elder abuse, assault with a deadly weapon and felony battery.
During a search of the home, police said a loaded Beretta 9mm handgun was located under the suspect's pillow in his bedroom.
According to jail records, Chavoya is scheduled to appear in court on Friday.
