Standoff ends peacefully

SANDPOINT — A Washington state man is accused of pointing a rifle at Sandpoint Police officer early Wednesday morning, touching off a six-hour standoff in Sunnyside that ended with the man's arrest.

James David Biddix is charged with felony assault and misdemeanor counts of eluding and resisting arrest. He made an initial appearance in Bonner County Magistrate Court on Wednesday via video feed from the county jail.

Judge Lori Meulenberg sustained Biddix's $50,000 bail and appointed a public defender to represent him, court records indicate.

The episode began at about 1:30 a.m. in Sandpoint, when an officer pulled Biddix over for straddling travel lane markers at Fifth Avenue and Cedar Street. Biddix showed physical signs of intoxication and admitted drinking alcohol, police reports said.

Biddix, a 48-year-old from Sedro-Wolley, allegedly took off in a Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck while the officer was checking his driving status and whether he was the subject of arrest warrants. Biddix's flight ignited a pursuit that drew in sheriff's deputies, Ponderay Police and Idaho State Police.

Biddix failed to yield and an attempt to disable the truck's tires with a spike strip, but the attempt fell short, police reports said. Biddix was pursued to a residence in the 600 block of Sunnyside Hill Road, according to the reports.

Biddix reportedly ran inside the residence and refused to come out. Sandpoint Officer Benjamin Koester said in his report that he shined his flashlight through a bay window and saw Biddix standing inside the residence holding a rifle at waist level.

Biddix pivoted upon seeing the officer and pointed the gun at him, prompting Koester to vault a deck rail and take cover. The sheriff's Emergency Response Team conducted surveillance on the home while officers secured arrest and search warrants.

Biddix, the reports said, was told repeatedly over loudspeaker to exit the home and surrender, but he refused. With warrants in hand by 7 a.m., the ERT made entry to the home and arrested Biddix without further incident.

A search of the home turned up three shotguns and two 30-06 rifles, according to court documents. The home is occupied by Biddix's parents, although they were out of town at the time of the incident.

Biddix made remarks that he kind of "flipped out" because he had been harassed by law enforcement in Washington, the reports said. He also reportedly stated that the officers didn't deserve the ordeal that he put them though and was apologetic for doing so.

Washington's online courts database lists Biddix as a defendant in a number of cases in Skagit and Whatcom counties, in addition to municipal court cases in Everett, Bothell and Anacortes. Some of the cases appear to be civil matters, while others appear to be criminal cases involving unspecified offenses.

Biddix has no prior criminal record in the state of Idaho, according to the supreme court's data repository.

A preliminary hearing to determine if there's enough evidence to justify trying Biddix in 1st District Court is pending.