New charges filed in Zionsville standoff
Mar. 22—Nicholas Schuhler pointed a handgun at three police officers, and may not be alive today if an officer's rifle hadn't jammed, according to court records.
Schuhler, 29, barricaded himself inside his parents' Zionsville home at 621 Lakeview Drive after pointing a handgun at a woman delivering newspapers at about 5 a.m. March 2, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Schuhler refused to speak with the Boone County Crisis Negotiation Team, and after hours of failed negotiations that saw Schuhler disable a police robot and toss a drone out a window, the county's special response team, SRT, went in after him.
The team knew from the robot that Schuhler carried a pistol in his hand as he moved around the house, SRT Element Leader Ryan Williamson said, adding that Schuhler pointed the gun at officers multiple times throughout the standoff.
Some SRT members remained outside of the home and lobbed pepper spray and a stun grenade through a window and into a room where they believed Schuhler to be hiding, according to the probable cause affidavit.
Boone County Sheriff's Deputy Eric Guyer, Whitestown Police Sgt. Blayne Root, and Boone County Sheriff's Detective Maj. Mike Beard found Schuhler crouched atop a full-sized refrigerator and holding a handgun, Root wrote in his report.
Schuhler pointed the handgun at all three officers, and Root sought and received permission to use lethal force to defend himself and other SRT members if a firearm was being pointed at them, according to the affidavit.
A bad round caused the rifle to malfunction, and Root dropped back to clear it, Williamson said. The outside team fired another stun grenade and more pepper gas into the room, which drove Schuhler to a window, where he pointed the pistol at Zionsville Police Detective Jacob Shelburne, the affidavit stated.
Shelburne could not fire a weapon into a house full of police officers but ordered Schuhler to drop the weapon and leave the house peacefully, Williamson said. Williamson, who was outside with Shelburne, did fire a less-than-lethal rubber bullet at Schuhler but does not know if it hit him.
Schuhler surrendered, empty handed, to police inside shortly after, Williamson said.
"We're thinking a higher being protected us and protected him at the same time, too," Williamson said. "Hopefully he can get the help he needs now."
Schuhler had called police earlier that day, saying there were signal lights all over the subdivision, according to dispatch records. He also previously told police that someone had implanted something in him and he was being watched.
A woman who was delivering newspapers that morning later called police to say Schuhler appeared in her headlights, pointing a gun at her.
Schuhler was apparently distraught about the suicide of a friend a year earlier. He and his father believe she is alive and there is some cover-up involving the sheriff's office, Deputy Jeremy McClaine reported.
Schuhler was charged March 2 with pointing a firearm at another and carrying a handgun without a license, in relation to the newspaper delivery driver. Boone County Deputy Prosecutor Bent Wilson last week filed an affidavit for three additional charges of pointing a firearm in relation to Root, Shelburne and Guyer.
Carrying a handgun without a license is a misdemeanor offense, while Schuhler's four charges of pointing a firearm are level 6 felonies.
Schuhler is being held in the Boone County Jail in Lebanon in lieu of $100,000 bond and is tentatively scheduled for trial in June.
