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25 stories up, suspect continues holdout (http://sptimes.com/2005/05/27/Worldandnation/25_stories_up__suspec.shtml)
By Associated Press
Published May 27, 2005

ATLANTA - A Florida homicide suspect remained perched on an 25-story construction crane for a third day Friday, holding police negotiators at bay and causing a spectacle in the heart of the city's entertainment district. A plea from his sister, offers of food and a plan to have him jump onto air bags hadn't resolved the standoff.

Carl Edward Roland climbed the crane around 5 p.m. Wednesday and told police he was thinking of killing himself by jumping, Atlanta police spokesman Sgt. John Quigley said. On Friday, he was still there.

"When he's ready to come down, he'll come down - one way or the other," Quigley said. "The protocol for them is to let him make the decisions."

Roland is wanted by the Pinellas County, Fla., sheriff's department in the death of ex-girlfriend Jennifer L. Gonzalez, 36. Her body was found Tuesday in a pond behind the apartment complex where she lived.

Authorities had said Thursday that Roland had talked to negotiators but refused food and water. Quigley said he didn't know if he had accepted anything since then.

Police called Roland's younger sister, Towana, who lives in Atlanta, to the scene Thursday. She said she hadn't seen him in years and hadn't realized he was in town.

She was not allowed to go up the crane, so she borrowed a mirror and tried to get his attention by flashing sunlight and shouting "Sugarfoot, it's your baby sister!"

Dozens of people - from construction workers to shopkeepers to restaurant employees - watched from sidewalks Friday as police continued to try to coax Roland into coming down.

Vernard Swindle, 29, laid off from his job stocking groceries, took a bus from his home three miles away to the scene to see what was going on. He was still there two hours later.

"I'm wondering what's going on in his head to stay up there more than 36 hours with no food or water," Swindle said.

On Thursday, the fire department set up large air bags on the roof of the condominium building under construction, with the thought that they could swing the arm of the crane in that direction and persuade Roland to jump, said Atlanta police Lt. F.J. Zunno. The fall to the bags would be about 90 feet.

Since March, the 41-year-old Clearwater, Fla., man had quit his job as a software salesman, filed for bankruptcy and talked about moving to Las Vegas, the St. Petersburg (Fla.) Times reported Friday. He had also talked about getting back together with the woman he is now accused of killing.

The standoff was disrupting traffic - and providing free entertainment - to residents and visitors in Atlanta's busy Buckhead neighborhood, an area filled with clubs and restaurants. Lunch and dinner crowds packed restaurant patios with clear views of the crane standoff.

(http://www.sptimes.com/2005/05/27/images/xlarge/A_1_1Acrane_GARF10_0527.jpg)
Atlanta police officers, right, try to convince Carl Edward Roland of Clearwater, left, to descend from a crane at a construction site in the Buckhead section of Atlanta on Thursday. Roland, 41, is a suspect in the death of his ex-girlfriend, Jennifer Gonzalez of Oldsmar.

When he's ready to come down, he'll come down - one way or the other

Police use stun gun to bring suspect off crane (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7991536/)
Man sought in death of ex-girlfriend seized after 56-hour standoff
The Associated Press

Updated: 10:25 a.m. ET May 28, 2005

ATLANTA - A 56-hour standoff with a homicide suspect perched on a construction crane ended peacefully early Saturday when police shocked him with a stun gun as he reached for a cup of water, authorities said.
 
“Apparently, he was thirsty,” police spokesman Sgt. John Quigley said.

Carl Edward Roland, 41, got onto the 18-story crane around 5 p.m. Wednesday and told police he was thinking of killing himself by jumping, authorities said.

The standoff unfolded above Atlanta’s busy Buckhead neighborhood, an area filled with clubs and restaurants. Lunch and dinner crowds, taking advantage of summer-like weather, have packed restaurant patios with clear views of the standoff.

Roland was wanted by the Pinellas County, Fla., sheriff’s department in the death of ex-girlfriend Jennifer L. Gonzalez, 36, whose body found Tuesday. An arrest warrant affidavit accuses Roland of strangling Gonzalez and dumping her body in a pond behind the apartment complex where she lived.

Two days earlier, Roland told acquaintances he believed Gonzalez was cheating on him and asked them if they could get him a firearm so he could kill her, according to the affidavit.

During the standoff negotiations, Roland accepted a jacket from police, which he used to beat back the chill at night and the sun during the day, but he refused offers of food and water.

But early Saturday, Roland stepped toward an officer to get some water, and the officer used a Taser on him, said Alan Dreher, Atlanta’s assistant police chief.

Roland showed mixed emotions during the negotiations, Dreher said.

“At times he was calm. At times he was cordial. At times he was irate. At times he was argumentative. It just depended on the situation,” he said.

Roland was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital and police expected to charge him with crimes in Atlanta and Florida. Hospital officials said he was in good condition.

Since March, the Clearwater, Fla., man had quit his job as a software salesman and filed for bankruptcy. Roland said he owed $10,500 in federal taxes and more than $13,000 on credit cards, court records show.