Anchorage Police have charged 37-year-old Jason Barnum with three counts of attempted murder in the shooting of a police officer on Thursday at the Merrill Field Inn. Barnum was arrested Friday morning after his release from an Anchorage hospital for treatment of a gunshot wound suffered in the shootout.
The standoff with Barnum resulted in a non-life-threatening injury to one police officer, while it shut down major traffic arteries in the city for about an hour. Police officers had gone to the motel to investigate a string of burglaries, when Barnum began shooting at them. A SWAT team was called in, and the motel was evacuated before Barnum surrendered. Barnum’s arraignment was scheduled for Friday afternoon.
