2013 Alabama bunker hostage crisis

2013 American murder and hostage crisis February 2013 2013 Alabama bunker hostage crisis Dale County Alabama Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Midland City Highlighted.svg 200px Location of Midland City in Dale County within the U.S. state of Alabama Bus hijacking, hostage crisis, murder Midland City, Alabama, U.S. Two children aboard a school bus January 29, 2013February 4, 2013 c. 3:30 p.m.'He's very paranoid': While Alabama hostage situation continues, neighbors describe gunman Jimmy Lee Dykes as a volatile loner Erik Ortiz 2019-01-10 2013-01-31 New York Daily News https://www.nydailynews.com/2013/01/31/hes-very-paranoid-while-alabama-hostage-situation-continues-neighbors-describe-gunman-jimmy-lee-dykes-as-a-volatile-loner/ 2023-10-04 live https://web.archive.org/web/20231004162828/https://www.nydailynews.com/2013/01/31/hes-very-paranoid-while-alabama-hostage-situation-continues-neighbors-describe-gunman-jimmy-lee-dykes-as-a-volatile-loner/ 2023-10-043:12 p.m. CST 2 (including the perpetrator) Charles Albert Poland, Jr. (killed on January 29) Jimmy Lee Dykes Ruger HandgunInside an FBI Hostage Crisis Michael M. Phillips 2014 The Wall Street Journal Audiovisual media, text http://graphics.wsj.com/hostage/ 12 October 2015 ... Sheriff Olson identified Mr. Dykes's pistol as a Ruger. live https://web.archive.org/web/20230525011406/http://graphics.wsj.com/hostage/ 2023-05-25 On January 29, 2013, a hostage crisis, lasting almost seven days, began in the Wiregrass Region near U.S. Highway 231 in Midland City, Alabama. Jimmy Lee Dykes, a 65-year-old Vietnam War-era veteran, boarded a Dale County school bus, killed the driver, and took a five-year-old boy hostage. On the afternoon of February 4, law enforcement agents entered the bunker, killed Dykes, and rescued the child.Alabama kidnapper was killed in firefight, explosives found in bunker, FBI says http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/02/05/alabama-kidnapper-was-killed-in-firefight-during-storming-bunker-fbi-says/ https://web.archive.org/web/20130206061422/http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/02/05/alabama-kidnapper-was-killed-in-firefight-during-storming-bunker-fbi-says/ dead February 6, 2013 Fox News 6 February 2013 Details Bus driver killing Just after 3:30 p.m., Dykes boarded a Dale County school bus that was stopped in Midland City and told the driver that he wanted to take two children, six and eight years old, both boys,https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/exclusive-cops-saved-boy-underground-bunker/story?id=19290180 How Cops Saved Boy in Bunker Standoff June 3, 2013 ABC News 2017-05-30 from the bus. The school bus driver, 66-year-old Charles Albert Poland, Jr., refused to let him take the children and challenged Dykes to shoot him. He blocked access to the aisle of the bus while Dykes continued to argue with him. Dykes fired five shots, killing Poland, and left the bus taking Ethan Gilman, a five-year-old from Midland City Elementary School, with him. After he had left the bus with Gilman, the students on the bus left through the front door, having to pass by the body of Poland, whom many of them had known for years. Authorities indicated that there was no pre-existing relationship between Dykes and the hostage.Seiger, T. "FBI: No clear timeline in Midland City hostage situation". al.com, February 1, 2013 Fifteen-year-old Tre' Watts, who was present on the bus, was the first person to call 911; he began the call when Dykes boarded the bus. Child abduction After the shooting, Dykes took Gilman to a 6-foot by 8-foot underground bunker on his property. The bunker contained homemade bombsAlabama hostage standoff update: Authorities slipped camera into bunker KNXV-TV http://www.abc15.com/dpp/news/national/alabama-hostage-standoff-update-authorities-slipped-camera-into-bunker#ixzz2K4ddOXC3 6 February 2013 https://web.archive.org/web/20130208012744/http://www.abc15.com/dpp/news/national/alabama-hostage-standoff-update-authorities-slipped-camera-into-bunker#ixzz2K4ddOXC3 February 8, 2013 dead and was equipped with a PVC ventilation pipe. Hostage negotiators cooperated with Dykes in an attempt to obtain Gilman's release and to bring the situation to a favorable conclusion.Carter, Chelsea J.; Howell, George. Alabama hostage suspect urged to let boy 'go home to his mother'. CNN, February 2, 2013. Negotiations thumb|right|The PVC pipe used by Dykes for communication. Soon after the shooting and abduction, Dykes called 911 and gave instructions on how to communicate with him. FBI hostage negotiators arrived at the bunker and began communicating with Dykes through the ventilation pipe, as he instructed.Dale County Sheriff: Hostage-taker Jimmy Lee Dykes planned the kidnapping for weeks Erin Edgemon 2013-03-06 Dothan Eagle http://blog.al.com/montgomery/2013/03/dale_county_sheriff_hostage-ta.html 2017-05-30 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20130310002833/https://blog.al.com/montgomery/2013/03/dale_county_sheriff_hostage-ta.html 2013-03-10 Because Gilman had Asperger's syndrome and ADHD, Dykes accepted medication for him, sent through the PVC pipe along with a coloring book and crayons.http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/02/06/alabama-hostage-standoff-jimmy-lee-dykes-seized-boy-to-gain-attention Alabama Hostage Standoff: Jimmy Lee Dykes Seized Boy to Gain Attention Michael Daly January 30, 2017 The Daily Beast 2017-05-30Jimmy Lee Dykes' Motive For Holding Boy In Alabama Bunker Remains Unclear: DA Jay Reeves 2013-02-09 The Huffington Post http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/09/jimmy-lee-dykes-motive-alabama-bunker_n_2652901.html 2017-05-30 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20130212023620/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/09/jimmy-lee-dykes-motive-alabama-bunker_n_2652901.html 2013-02-12 It was later confirmed that Dykes wanted a specific female reporter to hold his hand while broadcasting him live from the bunker, and that he would commit suicide on live television.The Boy In The Bunker Part 1 FBI True Efran Films Canada Paramount+ 1 9 2023-02-28 Investigators also revealed that he had been "training" Gilman to detonate the improvised explosive devices inside the bunker. Rescue On February 4, 2013, at 3:12 p.m. CST, the FBI's Hostage Rescue Team breached the roof of the bunker using explosive charges after negotiations began to break down and they saw, using a hidden camera, Dykes holding a gun. The agents threw stun grenades into the bunkerDr. Phil interviews mom of Alabama boy who was held in bunker Matt Pearce 2013-02-13 Los Angeles Times Sun Sentinel http://www.sun-sentinel.com/topic/la-na-nn-bunker-boy-mother-dr-phil-20130213,0,1744224.story 2017-05-30 dead https://archive.today/20130630091752/http://www.sun-sentinel.com/topic/la-na-nn-bunker-boy-mother-dr-phil-20130213,0,1744224.story 2013-06-30 before exchanging gunfire with Dykes, killing him,Alabama child hostage-taker shot multiple times, body removed from bunker Wednesday night Jay Reeves 2013-02-07 Associated Press Alabama Media Group http://blog.al.com/wire/2013/02/coroner_alabama_child_hostage-.html#incart_river_default 2013-02-20 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20130209205611/http://blog.al.com/wire/2013/02/coroner_alabama_child_hostage-.html 2013-02-09 and rescuing the boy. Gilman was taken to the hospital and was reported to be in good condition.Alabama hostage: 5-year-old boy "happy to be home," says family member Associated Press; CBS News; WKRG-TV CBS News https://www.cbsnews.com/news/alabama-hostage-5-year-old-boy-happy-to-be-home-says-family-member/ 2017-05-30 live https://web.archive.org/web/20130515231617/http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57567643/alabama-hostage-5-year-old-boy-happy-to-be-home-says-family-member 2013-05-15 According to sources, two improvised explosive devices were discovered,Jimmy Lee Dykes, Alabama Hostage Taker, Had Homemade Bombs In Bunker: Report Associated Press 2013-02-07 2013-02-05 The Huffington Post http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/05/jimmy-lee-dykes-bombs_n_2626408.html 2017-05-30 live https://web.archive.org/web/20150924173534/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/05/jimmy-lee-dykes-bombs_n_2626408.html 2015-09-24 one inside the PVC pipe, the other inside the bunker. Perpetrator Jimmy Dykes, a decorated Vietnam War Navy veteran, was identified as the gunman. He lived in isolation and supposedly lost contact with his two daughters years before the incident, according to people who lived near him.Jimmy Lee Dykes Dead: 5-Year-Old Hostage Rescued In Alabama Standoff 2013-02-06 2013-02-04 The Huffington Post http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/04/jimmy-lee-dykes-dead-alabama-hostage-situation_n_2615001.html 2017-05-30 live https://web.archive.org/web/20170412035651/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/04/jimmy-lee-dykes-dead-alabama-hostage-situation_n_2615001.html 2017-04-12 He previously lived in Florida, where he was arrested for brandishing a gun in 1995. In 2000, he was arrested for marijuana possession charges. He moved to Midland City, where he beat a neighbor's dog to death with an iron pipe when it walked onto his property, warned children not to enter his property, and built a speed bump to prevent motorists from driving too fast down the street. Dykes was also known to have patrolled his property at night with a shotgun and a flashlight. The day prior to the standoff, he was due in court for a hearing on a menacing case in which he allegedly fired a gun at neighbors. Dykes had cleared a path on his property for school buses to take, and he had started speaking to Charles Poland weeks prior to the incident. Aftermath The following week, on February 14, 2013, Dr. Phil interviewed Gilman and his mother, Jennifer Kirkland,Mom to Dr. Phil: Ethan having trouble sleeping Steve Almasy 2013-02-14 CNN http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/13/us/alabama-ethan-dr-phil/index.html?hpt=hp_c1 2013-02-20 live https://web.archive.org/web/20130217055852/http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/13/us/alabama-ethan-dr-phil/index.html?hpt=hp_c1 2013-02-17 who had been raising Gilman since he was three years old; Gilman had earlier been raised in the Dale County, Alabama foster care system due to Kirkland's substance abuse issues.Boy saved from gunman in bunker in 2013, now typical student Michele W. Forehand 2019-02-08 Associated Press; Dothan Eagle https://apnews.com/article/848e832b272f4cf09cc46359ff211aa0 2021-01-07 live https://web.archive.org/web/20231004061816/https://apnews.com/general-news-848e832b272f4cf09cc46359ff211aa0 2023-10-04 On February 26, the bunker where Dykes held him captive was demolished by officials, who stated that it posed "a biological risk".Alabama Hostage Bunker Destroyed: Jimmy Lee Dykes' Shelter Demolished By Authorities 2013-02-26 The Huffington Post Associated Press http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/26/alabama-hostage-bunker-destroyed_n_2768377.html 2017-05-30 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20130228052133/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/26/alabama-hostage-bunker-destroyed_n_2768377.html 2013-02-28 Soon after, Kirkland returned to substance abuse, leading to Gilman being raised by his grandmother, then by his 18-year-old brother when the grandmother died, until being adopted by the Turnersa local minister and his wife who had met then-toddler Gilman during his first round of foster care. As of February 2019, just days after the sixth anniversary of the end of the bunker crisis, the family was living in Dothan, Alabama, where the newly-turned 12-year-old Gilman (now Ethan Turner) was in fifth grade at a local elementary school. Alabama Code Title 13A. Criminal Code § 13A-7-4.2, known as the Charles "Chuck" Poland, Jr. Act,Alabama Code Title 13A. Criminal Code § 13A-7-4.2 https://codes.findlaw.com/al/title-13a-criminal-code/al-code-sect-13a-7-4-2.html Findlaw 24 July 2021 forbids trespass onto a school bus. It was named for Charles Poland, Jr., the school bus driver killed by Dykes. The act was signed into law by Governor Robert J. Bentley in June 2013.Alabama School Bus Trespass Act Named After Charles Poland Signed Into Law 2013-06-14 School Transportation News https://stnonline.com/news/alabama-school-bus-trespass-act-named-after-charles-poland-signed-into-law/ 2021-07-24 live https://web.archive.org/web/20220820164342/https://stnonline.com/news/alabama-school-bus-trespass-act-named-after-charles-poland-signed-into-law/ 2022-08-20 See also 1976 Chowchilla kidnapping List of kidnappings List of solved missing person cases (post-2000) References 30em Category:Armed standoffs in the United States Bunker hostage crisis Category:2013 murders in the United States Category:January 2013 crimes in the United States Category:February 2013 in the United States Category:Attacks in the United States in 2013 Category:Child abduction in the United States Bunker hostage crisis Bunker hostage crisis Bunker hostage crisis Category:Formerly missing American people Category:Hostage taking in the United States Category:Kidnapped American children Category:Missing person cases in Alabama Bunker hostage crisis