Standoff forces St. Ignatius residents to evacuate their homes

After a witness saw Keith Baylor of St. Ignatius shoot a gun into the air at about 3 p.m. yesterday that person called emergency dispatchers. Baylor, who is wanted for outstanding warrants, is believed to have walked to a friend’s house while responders proceeded to the scene.

Emergency responders were tipped off to an address Baylor visits commonly and found that Baylor did go to the residence willingly and was granted entrance.

Once law enforcement officers arrived at the home, Baylor was seen loading the rifle in his hands and proceeding to the back of the home, Don Bell, Lake County Sheriff said.

Baylor then engaged in a 30-minute stand off with law enforcement officers, but was eventually talked out of the room, arrested and transported to Lake County Jail in Polson.

During the armed standoff, however, emergency responders evacuated area homes and called in Mission Fire Department personnel as a precaution.

Bell said though they did not use it to get Baylor from the residence, they did have gas available for use to flush the suspect out. 

Lake County, Tribal, Montana Highway Patrol, Mission Police and Mission Fire Department responded to the scene.