Man in distress atop Sonoma County Transit bus brought down after nearly 10 hours
By Carlos E. Castañeda
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SANTA ROSA, California (KPIX) — A man in distress who climbed atop of a bus in Santa Rosa spent the next 10 hours perched atop the bus before officers were able to safely bring him down, police said.
The Santa Rosa Police Department said in a post on social media that the incident began at about 9:21 p.m. Sunday when officers responded to the area of Mendocino and McConnell avenues near Santa Rosa Junior College regarding someone on top of a Sonoma County Transit bus who had called 911 repeatedly asking for help.
Officers arrived and cleared the bus of riders and closed off the surrounding area. Police said officers communicated with the man and repeatedly offered help but he refused to come down from the bus. It was determined that initiating physical contact with the man could increase the risk of injury to him, the officers, or bystanders.
The standoff lasted through the night as officers used de-escation techniques while evaluating the safest way to resolve the situation, police said.
At about 6:56 a.m., the man came down from the bus and was safely detained without injury, police said. He was identified as 47-year-old Byron Poindexter of Pittsburg.
Poindexter was arrested and charged with being under the influence of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. He was booked at the Sonoma County Main Adult Detention Facility.
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