Police Help Man Threatening Suicide

On Thursday afternoon East Ridge police helped resolve a situation in which an emotionally distressed man was threatening to harm himself.

According to a press release from the department, officers responded to the scene at 730 Germantown Circle. The man was alone, armed with a handgun, and refusing to exit his apartment.

East Ridge PD Patrol officers evacuated the adjacent apartments and established a secure perimeter. ERPD SWAT Team was activated and responded to the scene. An ERPD Hostage Negotiator was also on scene and began communication with the individual in distress.

After speaking with the negotiator, the individual did eventually agree to exit the apartment and surrender to ERPD SWAT operators. He was then transported to a local hospital for evaluation and treatment.

There were no reported injuries or damage to property. East Ridge Police considers the incident to have been a successful deployment of the SWAT Team and resolution of a potentially dangerous situation.

About Dick Cook

Dick Cook has lived in East Ridge since the Kennedy Administration when his parents bought a house on Marietta Street. Dick graduated from ERHS in 1976 before going on to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga where he studied Political Science. Dick worked for the Chattanooga Free-Press and the Chattanooga Times Free Press for 22 years. Free-Press Sports Editor Roy Exum plucked him out of production in 1989 and gave him a job as a sports reporter. Dick covered everything from prep sports to the whitewater events on the Ocoee River for the 1996 Olympics. When Chattanooga's two paper's merged, he became the Crime Reporter covering both the Chattanooga Police and Fire Departments. He was among reporters who were honored by the Associated Press for the TFP's coverage of the 2002 fog-shrouded crash on I-75 in Catoosa County, Dick and his wife, Cathy, live on Marlboro Avenue where they are seen frequently chasing around their three grandsons.