GARY, IN - A dangerous hostage situation in Gary, Indiana ended Wednesday when a 38-year-old man, identified as Antonio McMichaels, holding a one-year-old child at gunpoint turned his weapon on police. The man was shot and killed by officers from the Gary Police Department and the Lake County Sheriff’s Office. The child was rescued unharmed.
According to reporting from CBS News, the assailant was holding two people hostage, a 35-year-old man and the child. At some point during the confrontation, the 35-year-old man was allegedly shot by the assailant, who then fled. The victim refused medical treatment.
McMichaels reportedly refused to leave with police and opened fire on officers, leading them to deploy an armored vehicle to breach the building. Tear gas was deployed into the building, and the rear door was rammed open, but the suspect still refused to leave, continuing to fire on officers.
After nearly eight hours, McMichaels exited the building holding the toddler, police said, and attempted to reach his vehicle parked nearby, pointing his gun at officers and using the child as a human shield.
An unidentified Gary police officer was able to target the hostage-taker and shoot him, neutralizing the threat to the child. The assailant was later pronounced dead.
The Gary Police Department said in commentary to WGN-TV that “all de-escalation efforts” were made and that McMichaels actively resisted them.
However, family members of McMichaels say police "didn't do enough" to de-escalate before the shooting became necessary. The suspect's sister, Sukari Calhoun, said that she wanted to talk to McMichaels through a bullhorn and that he would have walked away from the situation if she'd been allowed to.
GPD Chief of Police Derrick Cannon told reporters in a statement, “Our community is deeply saddened by this tragic incident that began as a family matter but escalated into a critical public safety situation involving a young child. I commend the officers who responded to this dangerous scene where the subject repeatedly fired at officers. I also extend my sincere gratitude to Lake County Sheriff, Oscar Martinez for providing additional resources, including their Police Assisted Recovery Initiative (PARI) team with licensed social workers who supported our negotiators’ de-escalation efforts.”
According to reporting from CBS News, the assailant was holding two people hostage, a 35-year-old man and the child. At some point during the confrontation, the 35-year-old man was allegedly shot by the assailant, who then fled. The victim refused medical treatment.
McMichaels reportedly refused to leave with police and opened fire on officers, leading them to deploy an armored vehicle to breach the building. Tear gas was deployed into the building, and the rear door was rammed open, but the suspect still refused to leave, continuing to fire on officers.
UPDATE: A man was fatally shot by police on Tuesday night after he barricaded himself inside a northwest Indiana home with his 1-year-old child, police say.
— WGN TV News (@WGNNews) April 9, 2025
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After nearly eight hours, McMichaels exited the building holding the toddler, police said, and attempted to reach his vehicle parked nearby, pointing his gun at officers and using the child as a human shield.
An unidentified Gary police officer was able to target the hostage-taker and shoot him, neutralizing the threat to the child. The assailant was later pronounced dead.
The Gary Police Department said in commentary to WGN-TV that “all de-escalation efforts” were made and that McMichaels actively resisted them.
However, family members of McMichaels say police "didn't do enough" to de-escalate before the shooting became necessary. The suspect's sister, Sukari Calhoun, said that she wanted to talk to McMichaels through a bullhorn and that he would have walked away from the situation if she'd been allowed to.
GPD Chief of Police Derrick Cannon told reporters in a statement, “Our community is deeply saddened by this tragic incident that began as a family matter but escalated into a critical public safety situation involving a young child. I commend the officers who responded to this dangerous scene where the subject repeatedly fired at officers. I also extend my sincere gratitude to Lake County Sheriff, Oscar Martinez for providing additional resources, including their Police Assisted Recovery Initiative (PARI) team with licensed social workers who supported our negotiators’ de-escalation efforts.”
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Comments
2025-04-12T23:53-0400 | Comment by: Steven
I will try really hard not to be inappropriate here. Let me get this straight: He had one person as a hostage and shot him. He flees, while shooting at police. He hides in a building, refusing to come out and continuing to shoot at the police. He takes a 1 year old child hostage and walks out of the building after an 8 hour stand off, holding a gun to the child. Still refusing to obey police directives, he heads towards his car and points the gun at police. He get's smoked, the baby is saved uninjured, but the family still doesn't think the police did enough?? Are you F**KING KIDDING?????? I'm assuming by the names of the dirt bag and his idiot sister, what race they are and sadly, I'm not surprised.