(This story was updated to add new information.)
A Delray Beach man is facing criminal charges including attempted first-degree murder after firing a gun at police officers trying to serve a warrant at his home on Thursday, March 5.
Officers took Evan Berkowitz into custody after a standoff at a residence outside his home off Linton Boulevard. No one was injured in the standoff, which lasted for about four hours and saw police shoot gas munitions into the home and even breach a window and the front door with a SWAT vehicle.
At a hearing on Friday, March 6, at the Palm Beach County Jail, Circuit Judge Donald Hafele ordered Berkowitz, 56, held without bail and appointed the county Public Defender’s Office to represent him. As a policy, the officer does not comment on open cases.
According to court records, other charges Berkowitz faces from the standoff include aggravated battery and committing a violent offense against a law-enforcement officer. He also faces charges of aggravated fleeing and eluding and reckless driving from a recent attempted traffic stop. He is due next to appear in court April 30.
Police say they came to home to serve arrest, DNA warrants on gunman
Police said in a prepared statement that Berkowitz had barricaded himself inside his home on the 4200 block of Palm Forest Drive South, a neighborhood of duplexes off Linton just east of Military Trail, by the time that officers arrived at about 8:30 a.m. They came to serve warrants to arrest him, search his home and take a DNA sample for an unspecified investigation.
The city SWAT team set up a perimeter around the home and tried to negotiate with him, according to the statement. A family member inside the house with him left the residence without incident, according to Berkowitz’s arrest report.
Berkowitz declined to leave the home after several orders to do so. Over the next few hours, officers fired gas munitions into the home and Berkowitz fired multiple shots at the officers from inside the residence.
SWAT also used a armored tactical vehicle, known as “the rook,” to force a way into the residence through a window and then the front doorway. Berkowitz fired between six and 12 more shots at the vehicle once it breached the front door before surrendering at about 12:30 p.m., according to the arrest report.
Police said Berkowitz wore a camoflauge jacket and eye goggles when he came out of the house. During an inspection after he was taken into custody, officers found 11 spent shell casings inside the house and three others in the SWAT vehicle that breached the window and front door.
They also found two propane cannisters in the living room, according to the arrest report.
“Despite being fired upon, our officers showed tremendous restraint, and discipline before safely taking the subject into custody,” Delray Beach Police Chief Darrell Hunter said in the statement. “Their actions reflect the training, composure, and courage required to resolve a dangerous situation while protecting lives.”
Tom Elia is an editor at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at telia@pbpost.com. Support local journalism: Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Delray man fires at police officers during SWAT standoff at home
Reporting by Tom Elia, Palm Beach Post / Palm Beach Post
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