Flagler County deputies were able to diffuse a tense situation after a man brandished what appeared to be a real gun Tuesday afternoon in the parking lot of the Flagler County Courthouse.
- Man, 21, brandished what appeared to be a real gun
- Incident happened in parking lot of Flagler County Courthouse
- Flagler deputies were able to diffuse the situation
At about 2:30 p.m., a deputy assigned to courthouse security heard an ongoing argument taking place in a moving vehicle in the parking lot. The deputy approached the driver's side of the black Nissan that was being driven by the mother of a 21-year-old man.
The mother yelled to the deputy, indicating her son had a gun.
The deputy went for cover, drew his agency-issued firearm and gave commands to the two people inside the vehicle.
The mother then grabbed the gun from her son and tossed it out of the driver's side window and toward the deputy, a report states.
The mother and the 21-year-old put their hands up and were directed to exit the vehicle. Deputies then approached the vehicle to make sure no one else was inside.
The man was taken into custody under Florida's Baker Act and will be transported to receive mental health treatment.
The gun turned out to be a toy gun without the typical orange markers.
The woman told deputies she had been driving around the parking lot at the courthouse in an attempt to get law enforcement officers' attention out of concern for her son.
Based on statements the man made to deputies, he might have been trying to commit "suicide by cop" by flashing what appeared to be a real weapon, deputies said.
"This situation could have ended tragically," Sheriff Rick Staly said in a statement. "Our deputies showed great restraint in de-escalating the situation instead of engaging the subject. This emotionally disturbed person may have been seeking to end his life. Our deputies did exactly what they were trained to do, and I am very proud of them."
The man never entered the courthouse and there was no threat to people inside, deputies said.