[SC] Ex-Officer Dietz surrenders to police. Ex-wife Eva & their son are released safely

...David Dietz, charged in a two-state kidnapping and hostage case that ended quietly Monday in Georgia, has deep roots in law enforcement - and a documented history of aggression... A relative of the mother of Dietz's infant son reported he shot at eight relatives, then sped off with the woman and the child... Columbia police provided no information on the reasons for Dietz’s departure in October 2006... It wasn't the former police officer's first run-in with the law. South Carolina police reports showed authorities were called twice last year to [armed] domestic disturbances between Dietz and Arce-Perez...

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[SC] Needing prayer: Allim & Eva kidnapped & held hostage by ex-officer Dietz

MAN HOLDING INFANT SURRENDERS AT GEORGIA MOTEL
AP
By KATE BRUMBACK – 6 hours ago
January 5, 2009
[Excerpts] MADISON, Ga. — A former South Carolina policeman who fired shots from a Georgia motel while holding his infant son and two women hostage surrendered peacefully Monday after a 13-hour standoff. FBI spokesman Steve Lazarus said David Dietz, 25, surrendered around 9:15 a.m. at the Red Roof Inn off Interstate 20 about 60 miles east of Atlanta. Dietz had been holed up in a second floor room with the infant, Allim David Dietz, his estranged wife, 29-year-old Eva Arce-Perez, and 17-year-old Jamie Lynn Burgess. South Carolina police reports showed authorities were called twice last year to domestic disturbances between Dietz and Arce-Perez. Authorities said Dietz was suspected of kidnapping the three Saturday night in West Columbia, S.C., while wearing a black uniform emblazoned with the word "police." The standoff started Sunday night after authorities issued a missing child alert and learned Dietz might be headed in the direction of Atlanta. Georgia State Patrol officers spotted Dietz's sport utility vehicle in the motel parking lot and called for assistance. Police say Dietz fired shots from his room and authorities evacuated other guests from the three-story motel. Lazarus said Dietz was placed in federal custody and will be charged with kidnapping in South Carolina. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation on Monday obtained state warrants charging Dietz with five counts of aggravated assault for allegedly firing on federal, state and local law enforcement officers Sunday night, GBI spokesman John Bankhead said. Other state charges are possible, he said. Dietz stepped onto the walkway outside the motel room holding the baby in his arms as he surrendered to police... In December, Arce-Perez called police to her home in West Columbia and claimed Dietz threatened her. "She stated that he called her wanting to see the baby even if he had to kick the door in," West Columbia Police Chief Dennis Tyndall said. Dietz was also arrested by Richland County, S.C., police in 2008 for criminal domestic violence after a fight with his estranged wife, according to a police report. Columbia, S.C., police spokesman Brick Lewis said Dietz was hired by the department in June 2006 but resigned in October 2006 without giving a reason and on "good terms" with the department. Dietz also worked as a probation officer until August 2007... [Full article here]
FORMER POLICEMAN, TEEN ARRESTED AFTER GA. STANDOFF Teen girl, former SC policeman in custody after standoff at Ga. motel ends
ABCNews
By Kate Brumback
January 5, 2009
[Excerpts] ...FBI spokesman Steve Lazarus said 25-year-old David Dietz surrendered around 9:15 a.m. at the Red Roof Inn off Interstate 20 about 60 miles east of Atlanta. Jamie Lynn Burgess, 17, was also taken into custody at the time. The two had been holed up in a second floor room with the infant, Allim David Dietz, and Dietz's estranged wife, 29-year-old Eva Arce-Perez. Two shots were fired at law enforcement agents from the room Sunday night. The next morning, Dietz stepped onto the walkway outside the motel room holding the baby in his arms as he surrendered. Burgess exited the room with her hands in the air. Burgess helped Dietz in the kidnapping... "It's our understanding they arrived together, they waited together and when the family and friends arrived home, she actively participated in the abduction," [West Columbia, S.C., Police Major Jackie] Brothers said... Burgess was set to return to South Carolina Monday night, where she would be charged with kidnapping, carjacking and assault with intent to kill, Brothers said. She won't face federal charges because she's a minor, Lazarus said. Dietz, who wore a black uniform emblazoned with the word "police" during the abduction, was being held in federal custody in Macon and would face federal charges of kidnapping in South Carolina and federal charges of assaulting a federal officer in Georgia since shots were fired at FBI agents, Lazarus said. He said they hoped to bring Dietz before a federal magistrate on Tuesday. He also faces state charges including kidnapping, assault with intent to kill and carjacking in South Carolina and five counts of aggravated assault in Georgia, authorities said... It wasn't the former police officer's first run-in with the law. South Carolina police reports showed authorities were called twice last year to domestic disturbances between Dietz and Arce-Perez.
Police in West Columbia were called to the home where Arce-Perez lived in December after the woman claimed Dietz threatened her.
"She stated that he called her wanting to see the baby even if he had to kick the door in," West Columbia chief Dennis Tyndall said.
An incident report filed in May by the Richland County, S.C. Sheriff's Department says Dietz was arrested for criminal domestic violence after he tried to force then-pregnant Arce-Perez to leave her apartment with him and pointed a gun at her brother, threatening to shoot if he tried to intervene. A judge dismissed charges in that case when Arce-Perez didn't show up for a hearing... [Full article here]

GA. STANDOFF ENDS PEACEFULLY: SUSPECT HAS MANY LAW-ENFORCEMENT TIES
Ex-cop held in kidnapping that spanned 2 states
The State
By CLIF LeBLANC - cleblanc@thestate.com
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
[Excerpts] David Dietz, charged in a two-state kidnapping and hostage case that ended quietly Monday in Georgia, has deep roots in law enforcement - and a documented history of aggression... His arrest ended an ordeal that West Columbia police said began Saturday night after a desperate 911 call. A relative of the mother of Dietz's infant son reported he shot at eight relatives, then sped off with the woman and the child in a stolen silver Ford Explorer with the help of a teenage girl. Dietz's ties to police work date to early 2006 when the Lexington County resident, 25, was an intern with the federal Drug Enforcement Administration while he worked on a criminal justice degree from USC. Later, Dietz briefly was a state probation agent and a Columbia police officer. Local sheriffs rejected his requests to become a reserve deputy. Most recently, Dietz, who is a product of the state's foster-care system, worked in its foster-care programs. Police in West Columbia charged him with 13 offenses. West Columbia Maj. Jackie Brothers said Jamie Lynn Burgess, 17, has been charged with 11 offenses... She and Dietz are charged with kidnapping, assault with intent to kill and carjacking. He faces additional charges in West Columbia. He also is charged with firing at federal agents Sunday, a Georgia FBI spokesman said... During the standoff, Donald Dietz, who was David Dietz's foster father, spoke to David by telephone, which helped authorities, Brothers said. "We're very fortunate it ended the way it ended," she said. "It could have been a whole lot worse." Georgia authorities have not charged Burgess, who has a history of running away from home... Burgess kept Perez from getting out of a car at her duplex, where relatives rallied around Perez and the baby, Brothers said... No restraining orders were on record in Lexington County, but both [Dietz & Perez] were restrained Nov. 25 by a Richland County Family Court judge, according to courthouse records. Perez had sought restraining orders earlier in 2008, but the orders were dropped after Perez didn't appear when the cases were called... Dietz had confrontations with Perez in May and mid-December, police records in both counties show. On May 3, while pregnant, Dietz argued with Perez and her brother at Harbour Landing Apartments in Richland County. He demanded she come home with him. When she refused, he pulled a gun, pointed it at her brother and said he would shoot him if he interfered, according to the report. Relatives were so frightened that deputies gave Perez's brother a ride home. Later, deputies returned to her apartment complex when Dietz showed up armed with a .40-caliber Glock registered to him. He was charged with criminal domestic violence. In mid-December, Perez told West Columbia police Dietz called her and said he would visit the baby, "even if he has to kick the door in." She was too afraid to meet him at police headquarters, as he suggested, according to the report. A former employer of Dietz filed a complaint in November 2007 when he was fired for being aggressive toward co-workers at a senior-care center. She described him as "very aggressive" when he was told to leave. A physician called the center to report he heard Dietz talking about retribution. Dietz also encountered resistance in law enforcement when he applied to become a Richland County reserve deputy. He was rejected in March 2005 during firearms training, Sheriff Leon Lott said. "He was very unsafe with a firearm. He would not listen to his instructors. He had a bad attitude. We let him go then." The Lexington Sheriff's Department rejected Dietz in February 2006 after his first interview, spokesman John Allard said, adding that records spelling out the details weren't immediately available... Columbia police provided no information on the reasons for Dietz's departure in October 2006, shortly after he became a patrol officer. [Full article here]