Domestic Dispute Involving Firearm Turns into SWAT Standoff

What started as a domestic dispute call turned into a standoff between an armed man and SWAT teams in Sevierville on Sunday.

According to the Sevierville Police Department, officers responded to a residence at 121 Crescent Drive at 8:57 p.m. on June 19, 2016 after receiving a report of a domestic dispute. Officers interviewed a woman outside the home who reportedly told officers that her boyfriend, 25-year-old Kody Evan Lane, was intoxicated and had fired several rounds at her with a handgun. During that interview, the suspect fired subsequent shots that prompted the department to set up a perimeter and activate its SWAT team.

The department utilized the SWAT officers and K-9 Buck to contain Lane inside the established perimeter while its crisis negotiators talked with him for more than an hour in an attempt to resolve the standoff. Lane fired additional shots during that dialogue. The Sevierville Police Department requested assistance from the Knoxville Police Department SWAT team and they arrived with several operators, an additional K-9 unit and specialized equipment to help resolve the situation.

Lane finally surrendered to officers at 12:10 a.m. after discussions with crisis negotiators and one of his friends proved successful. He was booked at the Sevier County jail on an aggravated domestic assault warrant and is being held without bond.

Kody Evan Lane, 25, of Sevierville, Tenn.

“Thanks all our partner agencies for their assistance in this successful crisis resolution… the Sevier County Sheriff’s Office, Sevier County Ambulance Service, and the Knoxville Police Department,” said Detective Kevin Bush of the Sevierville Police Department, who acted as a crisis negotiator during the standoff.

Lane pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor domestic assault charge in 2012 that prohibits him from owning any firearms. Police confirmed that guns were found in the home and that if the investigation finds they belonged to Lane, he could face additional charges.

All persons are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.