Standoff closes neighborhood

Police allege Franklyn Ott Sr., 37, barricaded himself in his home.

By MICHELE CANTY
Daily Record/Sunday News
Friday, November 12, 2004

Sonjia Horn paced the street and took a drag from her cigarette Thursday evening.

She was on her way home from a long shift on her feet at Wendy's and buying groceries when she was stopped by fire police at an intersection about a block from her Dover Township home.

Horn was tired. Her feet hurt. She just wanted to go home.

"Why can't I go to my house? I want to go to home," Horn said.

The fire policewoman blocking Horn's street didn't have many answers for her. She just knew it was not safe for Horn and others who lived on Night-in-gale Drive to go down their street.

Defeated, Horn said, "I just want to go home."

Northern York County Regional Police went to Horn's neighborhood, Sunrise Acres, shortly after 5 p.m., to respond to a report of a couple fighting at their home on the 3200 block of Night-in-gale Drive.

When they arrived, police said, Beth Ott was outside, but her husband, Franklyn E. Ott Sr., 37, was armed and had barricaded himself inside the house. His son, Frank Ott Jr., 16, was in the house with him during the standoff, but it wasn't clear if the teen was being held against his will, police said.

For more than three hours, authorities closed sections of Night-in-gale Drive, Emig Mill Road and other nearby streets and asked residents to stay inside while they negotiated with Ott.

York County's Quick Response Team, a specialized force that deals with special threats and high-risk situations, was called in to help.

While police worked, Horn and several others stood at the intersection of Night-in-gale and Chickadee drives wondering what was going on.

After standing for about an hour, Horn remembered the butter and frozen french fries she bought earlier.

"I've got groceries in the car. What am I going to do about them?" Horn asked.

One of her other neighbors, who had been sitting in her car for about an hour, was tired of waiting. She snatched her purse and other bags out of her car before she locked it.

"This is ridiculous," she said. "I'm going home."

She walked in the other direction, away from the fire police officers, ducked around the corner through someone's back yard, and went into her own.

Horn was tempted to do the same, but worried it could be dangerous. Her other neighbors told her they saw police officers with big rifles and police helmets carrying large shields. She didn't want to be in the middle of whatever was going on.

She called her husband and son, who were at home, to tell them she was OK. Her husband told her he wouldn't go to sleep until she came home. She had to yell at her 16-year-old son, Justin, to keep him from trying to come down the street to get her.

"No, you cannot leave the house. Do you hear me?" she told him. "No, I don't know what's going on, but you can't come outside."

Horn got in the car to warm herself up, and then got out again to talk to Devon Beck, who was riding his bike up and down Night-in-gale Drive. The 14-year-old was stopped by a police officer who told him to turn around and get off the street — now.

"It's crazy. This is Dover. You don't expect any excitement here," Devon said.

Neighbor Joel Anderson, who lives on another street, came down because he was curious.

Shortly after 8 p.m., the group heard police broadcasts that said officers had cleared the scene. Ott came out of his home and was taken into custody, police said. He faces several charges, including harassment, terroristic threats, recklessly endangering another person and endangering the welfare of a child, according to police.

The district justice on duty Thursday night set Ott's bail at $10,000. He posted it and was released, police said.

Ott's neighbors were able to go home about an hour after his arrest. Horn waited until a police officer came to the intersection and told the fire policewoman she could let the residents go home. The officer thanked Horn for being patient, and for cooperating with police.

"No problem. That was four houses down from mine," Horn told the officer. "I wasn't going down there." After he left, she rushed to her car. Horn made a U-turn and hurried down Night-In-gale Drive.

She had a hot shower, left- over baked chicken and macaroni and cheese at home waiting for her, she said.