Man charged in dispute that forced a lockdown

A man was charged Friday after police say he forced an elementary school to go into lockdown earlier this week when he fired shots into the air during a domestic dispute.

Ernesto Perez, 18, was charged in 3rd District Court with eight felonies and one misdemeanor ranging from two counts of discharging a firearm from a vehicle and obstructing justice to five counts of committing domestic violence in the presence of children.

On Tuesday, Salt Lake police were called to a home near 400 N. Dorthea Way (1895 West) after Perez allegedly threatened to punch his live-in girlfriend, who is pregnant with his child, in the face and stomach, according to court records. The 17-year-old girlfriend called her mother to pick her up. When the mother arrived, she, too, got into an argument with Perez, court records state.

Perez then went into his house, retrieved a firearm, went back outside and fired into the air twice, according to court records. Two children were inside the house at the time, and three were in the mother's vehicle.

After Perez was tracked down by police about a half block from his home, he told them he had thrown the gun into the Jordan River, court documents say.

A SWAT team was called to make sure no one was hiding inside the home. The incident prompted a brief lockdown at nearby Meadowlark Elementary, 497 N. Morton Drive, which affected students in after-school programs.

A charge of discharging a firearm from a vehicle can be filed if shots are fired within 600 feet of a house.

Email: preavy@desnews.com