Rowdy
01-29-2008, 04:01 PM
I got this off of a local news story here in Tulsa....
http://www.ktul.com/news/stories/0108/491811.html
Former NFL Defensive Lineman Taken Into Custody Following Standoff
posted 1:12 pm Tue January 29, 2008 - Tulsa
Tulsa police say a man identified as a former National Football League player has been taken into custody after a pursuit and standoff in north Tulsa.
NewsChannel 8 - Former NFL Defensive Lineman Taken Into Custody Following Standoff
Suspect has been identified by police as 36-year-old Alonzo Spellman, a former NFL player who played with the Chicago Bears, Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions. He also played for the Arena Football League's Las Vegas Gladiators and is currently participating in mixed martial arts.
The incident began when police say Spellman began threatening clerks at a QuikTrip convenience store near 11th and Utica. When police arrived and attempted to question him, they say he went to his car and led officers on a pursuit reaching speeds of 60 miles per hour.
Police were able to spike three of Spellman's tires and get the chase to slow down. Spellman continued to the 23-hundred block of West Newton, where Spellman barricaded himself inside his vehicle and refused to come out.
The standoff with lasted about 30 minutes before he was taken into custody shortly after 1 p.m.
Spellman has had a long and well-publicised battle with bi-polar disorder, which was featured in an ESPN special.
In 1998, Spellman was diagnosed with bi-polar disorder after he became enraged and had to be hospitalized. But, he walked out of the hospital and was later found wandering barefoot along a highway.
Police say Spellman, who now lives in Tulsa, has had a history of confrontation with officers and that his immense size -- about 6'4" and nearly 300 pounds -- required that the threats be taken seriously.
"We want to deal with him the best way we can and treat him the best way we can," says Corporal David Crow. "But, a lot of times his anger won't allow us to do so. We know that of his size and of his well-publicized bi-polar disease, it can take a while for him to calm down."
We will have much more on this story tonight on NewsChannel 8 and will have more details as they become available.
http://www.ktul.com/news/stories/0108/491811.html
Former NFL Defensive Lineman Taken Into Custody Following Standoff
posted 1:12 pm Tue January 29, 2008 - Tulsa
Tulsa police say a man identified as a former National Football League player has been taken into custody after a pursuit and standoff in north Tulsa.
NewsChannel 8 - Former NFL Defensive Lineman Taken Into Custody Following Standoff
Suspect has been identified by police as 36-year-old Alonzo Spellman, a former NFL player who played with the Chicago Bears, Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions. He also played for the Arena Football League's Las Vegas Gladiators and is currently participating in mixed martial arts.
The incident began when police say Spellman began threatening clerks at a QuikTrip convenience store near 11th and Utica. When police arrived and attempted to question him, they say he went to his car and led officers on a pursuit reaching speeds of 60 miles per hour.
Police were able to spike three of Spellman's tires and get the chase to slow down. Spellman continued to the 23-hundred block of West Newton, where Spellman barricaded himself inside his vehicle and refused to come out.
The standoff with lasted about 30 minutes before he was taken into custody shortly after 1 p.m.
Spellman has had a long and well-publicised battle with bi-polar disorder, which was featured in an ESPN special.
In 1998, Spellman was diagnosed with bi-polar disorder after he became enraged and had to be hospitalized. But, he walked out of the hospital and was later found wandering barefoot along a highway.
Police say Spellman, who now lives in Tulsa, has had a history of confrontation with officers and that his immense size -- about 6'4" and nearly 300 pounds -- required that the threats be taken seriously.
"We want to deal with him the best way we can and treat him the best way we can," says Corporal David Crow. "But, a lot of times his anger won't allow us to do so. We know that of his size and of his well-publicized bi-polar disease, it can take a while for him to calm down."
We will have much more on this story tonight on NewsChannel 8 and will have more details as they become available.