UPDATED: Strandberg gets out of jail Friday, back in trouble Saturday

(Photo by Heidi Puckett) Police have Jason M. Strandberg on the ground waiting to transport him following a standoff at a trailer near the corner of NE 2nd & H Sts. in Linton. [Order this photo]

(Photo by Chris Pruett) [Order this photo]

Numerous officers from the Linton Police Department descended upon the scene when a report came in shortly before 2 p.m. that a man with a gun, Strandberg, was holed up in a trailer near the corner of NE H and 2nd Sts.

Deputies from the Greene County Sheriff's Department and Indiana State Police troopers also responded quickly to assist the LPD.

(Photo by Chris Pruett) [Click to enlarge] [Order this photo]

With officers surrounding the residence, a witness at the scene, Matt Russell of Linton, told the Greene County Daily World that Strandberg had reportedly stolen Corey Robinson's van earlier in the day as it was parked near Kern's Gas Station in Linton.

Russell said Robinson, along with Russell (Robinson's cousin) and two others, were driving by the Linton-Stockton Elementary School's south parking lot near H St. later in the day when they noticed Robinson's van. They stopped, inspected the parked van, determined it was Robinson's, then went to the nearby trailer where Strandberg's former girlfriend lived to see if they could locate Strandberg.

Russell said when they entered the trailer, "(Strandberg) pulled a gun. Then Corey took the gun and hit (Strandberg) with it. Then he tried to run out a back window, and we pushed him back inside until the police got here."

Later in the evening, LPD Chief Troy Jerrell said he could not say what events might have led up to stand-off situation.

"We've heard one story but we've not had an opportunity to sit down and talk with Strandberg. We know some type of altercation took place inside Strandberg's residence but we've only got one side of the story at this time," said Jerrell.

Jerrell said his officers were initially told Strandberg had a firearm and when they were on the scene, Strandberg told officers he had a firearm.

"At one point, while we were talking to him, an officer saw him through a window wielding a knife. We did not know for sure if he had a firearm inside but we took extra caution. You always try to talk first -- and we had time on our side. After a couple of hours of talking, officers did force their way into the residence, but once inside, the situation ended without any fight and without any serious injury," said Jerrell.

Witnesses at the scene described hearing loud popping noises during the stand-off -- Jerrell said the noises came from fireworks and that no shots were fired during the incident.

One LPD officer did receive a minor injury on the scene -- Jerrell said Cpl. Chad Crynes scraped his arm going through a door into the residence. Crynes was sent to the hospital to have the scrape cleaned and treated by medical personnel as a precautionary measure.

Strandberg was taken into custody and transported to the Greene County General Hospital where he was treated then admitted. Strandberg did have some non-life-threatening injuries but Jerrell said those were received prior to police arrival on the scene.

On Monday afternoon, Jerrell said Strandberg was in Terre Haute where he was being treated and under observation at a medical care facility.

Late on Saturday, Jerrell said, "With the situation that has occurred, I did not think it appropriate to incarcerate him in the jail tonight. There will be an investigation related to the complaint of theft of a vehicle and that could potentially result in local charges against him."

Jerrell did confirm that Strandberg was at his own residence when the incident occurred and that other people had entered his residence before police were called.

Criminal charges may be filed in connection with the incident but Jerrell would not comment on what charges were expected.

"Det. Sgt. Keith McDonald is leading the investigation and I expect some charges will be coming but I cannot speculate on who might be charged or what the charges might be until after McDonald and other officers have completed this investigation," said Jerrell.

This incident was not Strandberg's first go-around with the law. According to a jailer at the Sheriff's Department, Strandberg had been serving a sentence prior to his release at 9 a.m. on Friday.

A little over a year ago, in early June 2008, a car chase through the streets of Linton then a foot pursuit through a north side neighborhood late on a Sunday night ended with his arrest.

That incident began when LPD Officer Heath Murray attempted to stop a vehicle driven by Strandberg that was clocked going 47 mph in a 35 mph zone on State Road 54 at the intersection of 4th St. N.E.

The vehicle turned south on 6th St. N.E., Murray also turned south and activated his lights but Strandberg reportedly did not stop but continued on at a high rate of speed, running multiple stop signs. The chase turned onto Main Street going south then west onto H St. N.E. When it wound up eastbound on E St. N.E., Strandberg's car almost struck LPD Cpl. Paul Clark's patrol vehicle.

Strandberg then ran off the road and struck a telephone pole then a light pole.

After the car came to a stop, Strandberg fled the scene and was pursued on foot with multiple surrounding Greene County law enforcement agencies involved including the Greene County Sheriff's Department and Jasonville and Bloomfield police departments.

Strandberg was eventually caught running behind a residence in the H Street area, taken into custody and booked into jail on preliminary charges of felony resisting law enforcement in a vehicle, misdemeanor resisting law enforcement on foot, misdemeanor reckless driving and felony criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon.

The wrecked vehicle was a rental vehicle owned by Kinnett Auto Sales in Linton.

Strandberg had also been arrested earlier that spring, in April 2008, after officers saw him "burning out" and "smoking the tires" on his vehicle.

In that incident, the LPD dispatcher had been receiving numerous reports about an older model Chevy Suburban driving erratically in the northeast part of Linton after midnight on a Saturday night. Patrolmen then observed the vehicle "burn out and smoke" its tires at the intersection of 1st St. and E St. N.W. and initiated a traffic stop.

According to the police report, Strandberg was the driver and he was swaying, had slurred speech, glassy and bloodshot eyes and smelled of alcohol. He failed all of the standard field sobriety tests, refused a chemical test and was then arrested. He was booked into jail on preliminary charges of two counts related to operating a vehicle while intoxicated.

Then in the latest incident, prior to Saturday's standoff, back on April 2 he was taken into custody around 10 p.m. by LPD Officer Heath Murray after five officers responded to a domestic disturbance in Linton involving a battery and scuffle with a minor child present.

According to a police report, when officers arrived at a residence on NE 2nd St., Strandberg said he had been in an altercation with another man. Witnesses said Strandberg was heavily intoxicated and had struck a woman and when he said he was going to hit her again, that other man told Strandberg he wasn't going to do that while he was around.

Strandberg then allegedly hit the man -- who suffered a knot on the head. A scuffle ensued and Strandberg struck the woman again in the side of her head. The incident reportedly took place in the presence of a child less than 16-years-old.

Strandberg suffered a head wound, was treated at the hospital then transported to jail and booked in on preliminary charges of misdemeanor battery with bodily injury and felony battery in the presence of a minor.

Besides Murray, other officers who responded to this incident included Greene County Sheriff's Deputy Chris McDonald, and LPD Cpl. Paul Clark, Officer Debbie McDonald and Reserve Officer Tom Jerrels.