HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – The man accused of shooting a sheriff’s deputy has now been charged.
The shooting sparked a 15-hour standoff in the Kapahulu area that began around 9 a.m. Tuesday.
Robert Melvin Morris finally surrendered around midnight. He dated a woman, who is believed to be his wife.
The 49-year-old man is accused of assaulting a federal agent.
Morris allegedly shot a DEA task force officer in the hand as the group attempted to execute a search warrant at the Herbert Street home.
A section of Herbert Street was still blocked off Wednesday afternoon while federal agents, state law enforcement and county police gathered more evidence.
The reduced crime scene allowed Sue Sargis to return home after spending the night at a friend’s house in Hawaii Kai. Sargis said she spent most of Tuesday at Kahala Mall trying to wait out the standoff.
“They kept saying, give it two hours, give it two hours. But at 8:30 or 9 a.m., I was thinking I’m not going into my house,” Sargis said.
Another neighbor who did not want his name used described hearing the incident unfold.
“I heard glasses flying, and then I heard six gunshots,” the owner said.
The retired man said officers from the Specialized Services Division then commandeered his house. He and his wife weren’t allowed in their car, so they waited on the sidewalk with just the car keys, phone, and their dog through the whole ordeal.
“All day I ate spam musubi,” the man said.
One of his neighbors gave him a lawn chair to sit on, another gave him bottled water and yet another gave him an umbrella when it started to rain.
“We were going to walk to the shelter,” but he said it was already 10 p.m. when they decided to try the half-mile walk to Paki Hale. They changed their minds and returned to the area near their home.
“It’s dangerous. You know, we are old people and that’s why I didn’t want to walk,” the man said.
Rade Vanic, Honolulu’s acting police chief, said in a statement: “High-risk situations like these often require our officers to act quickly, leaving people without sufficient time to prepare, and we understand that this can be frustrating. However, we are always grateful for their cooperation.”
Vanic encouraged anyone with needs to ask an officer for help getting to a staging area. “An officer could have arranged a carpool, or maybe even transported him,” Vanic said.
The department holds after-action briefings to discuss areas for improvement, he said.
The American Red Cross said seven people spent the night at Paki Hale.
Morris has previous arrests for car theft, gun and drug offenses on Oahu and Kauai.
Morris is in the federal detention center and could face additional charges. Multiple sources said drugs were found in the Herbert Street home.
Morris’ first appearance is scheduled for Thursday at 10:30 a.m.
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