Key Takeaways
- A Parkland, Washington homeowner found a stranger, later identified as Paul Maestry-Williams, standing inside his kitchen Sunday night.
- The family’s dog was the first to signal something was wrong before residents discovered the unfamiliar man in their home.
- The homeowner physically forced the man out of the house, then held him at shotgun point until Pierce County deputies arrived and arrested him.
- Maestry-Williams, 40, pleaded not guilty Monday and a judge denied a defense request to release him without bail.
- The Pierce County Sheriff’s Office described the incident as an armed homeowner stopping a residential burglary.
Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
PARKLAND, WA — A Pierce County homeowner forced a stranger out of his house Sunday night, then held him at gunpoint with a shotgun until deputies arrived and took the man into custody. The Pierce County Sheriff’s Office listed it at the top of its weekend roundup under a plain heading: “Armed Homeowner Stops Residential Burglary.”
The rest of the details come from deputies and body-camera footage, as reported by FOX 13 Seattle. Deputies were called to the Parkland neighborhood along 12th Street around 8 p.m. The call started as a report of a man sleeping on a neighbor’s back porch. It turned into something else once residents realized the man had gotten inside their home.
At first, the family thought the person in the house might be a relative. Their dog was the first to signal that something was wrong. Then they found a strange man standing in their kitchen, according to Deputy Carly Cappetto.
Most people would make that first assumption. Hearing someone moving around the house on a Sunday evening sounds like family, and that is the moment complacency gets people hurt. The mindset worth building is simple: you confirm who is in your home before you relax, not after. In this case, the dog did the confirming.
Body-camera footage captured the resident physically forcing the man out of the house. The homeowner then held him with a shotgun. Deputies moved in and took him into custody. Deputies also reported hearing shouting from another home down the road while all of this was unfolding.
Holding someone at gunpoint until help arrives is not the end of the danger. It is a standoff, and the person behind the gun has to be ready for the suspect to comply, run, or fight, and to respond correctly to each. A firearm is for an imminent threat of death or serious bodily harm, and that standard does not change because the suspect is now standing in your yard instead of your kitchen.
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The man was identified as 40-year-old Paul Maestry-Williams. He pleaded not guilty in court Monday. A judge denied a defense request to release him without bail and barred cameras from showing his face during the proceedings. The allegations against him have not been proven, and he is presumed innocent unless convicted.
The homeowner has not been publicly identified and declined to give an on-camera interview Monday. No charges against him have been announced.
