Man charged with firing rifle during police standoff

WEST VALLEY CITY — A man accused of locking himself in a West Valley home and firing rounds from a assault rifle out the window last month now faces a handful of felony charges.

Wayne Parry, 43, was arrested Dec. 20 after a standoff with police that lasted three hours. Parry was charged in 3rd District Court Thursday with eight counts of discharging a firearm, a third-degree felony.

Parry was also charged with four counts of aggravated assault and one count of possession of a firearm by a restricted person, all third-degree felonies, as well as four counts of violating a protective order, a class A misdemeanor. 

Parry had been served with a protective order the day before, prohibiting him from contacting his girlfriend or possessing any weapons. The woman received nine text messages and three phone calls after the order was filed, the charges state.

A search of the house revealed an assault rifle, a box containing 400 rounds of ammunition, 12 spent shell casings and bullet holes spread across the walls, according to police.

Parry slammed the door on an officer responding to a domestic disturbance at the house earlier in the day, threatening to kill the officer, the charges state. The officer left with Parry's girlfriend, returning to the police station, where Parry allegedly continued to call the woman's cellphone.

Police were dispatched to the house later in the day on a report of shots fired. A bullet hole was found in the fence and another in a tree of a neighboring yard. Officers also reported seeing debris fly off the corner of the house where Parry had barricaded himself.

During the exchange, Parry refused to come out of the house and continued to threaten to kill officers, according to the charges. He eventually surrendered and was treated for a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the jaw.  

E-mail: mromero@deseretnews.com

Twitter: @McKenzieRomero