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Jamestown Man Receives Prison Sentence for Barricading with Toddler During 12-Hour Standoff

By Payton Gall Jul 16, 2025 | 6:14 AM

Judge LeFevre sentenced Jacob Lee Schmitt to 13 months in the North Dakota Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation with credit for 21 days served after pleading guilty to four felony charges stemming from a June 18th standoff in Jamestown’s Western Park Village.

The incident began when a woman called police at 2 a.m., saying Schmitt was threatening her life and refusing to leave her home. The woman indicated that Schmitt was using drugs inside the residence. When officers approached, he barricaded himself in a back bedroom with a 2-year-old child while the woman and three other children escaped safely.

The 12-hour standoff required the James Valley Special Operations Team, as Schmitt would not cooperate with police and had access to a firearm. Residents in the Western Park Village were forced to shelter in place. During the ordeal, Schmitt never fed or changed the toddler’s diaper, according to court records. Officers safely removed the child and arrested Schmitt at 12:45 p.m., finding drug paraphernalia on him.

Near the crime scene in Western Park Village on June 18 / Payton Gall

Court documents say Schmitt pleaded guilty to child neglect, preventing arrest, methamphetamine possession (with previous convictions in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020 and 2021), and illegal firearm possession. He has five prior convictions of meth possession in the past 5 years. Along with his prison sentence, he received 12 months supervised probation and must pay over $1,300 in fees and restitution.

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