Standoff suspect dies after shooting himself | News

MUSKEGON, Mich. (UDPATE 10:30AM/Wednesday) - Norton Shores Police tell WZZM 13's Jon Mills that Charles Byer has died from his wounds.

NORTON SHORES, Mich. (WZZM) -- Investigators say the man who held them off at gunpoint for several hours before turning his gun on himself is in critical condition at a Muskegon hospital.

Police went to the home of Charles Byer, 51, on Lake Harbor Drive Tuesday after receiving a call from family members concerned for his safety.  Officers determined Byer, who has a 2010 conviction for a sex offense, was wanted for probation violation after missing several appointments with his probation officer.

Shortly after officers arrived at Byer's home around 10 a.m., he walked out into his yard with a handgun.  They say Byer ignored their demands to put down the weapon.  Byer eventually walked several hundred yards away and sat next to a shed.

Negotiators had spent more than two and a half hours talking with Byer, trying to get him to surrender, when officers heard a single shot.  They found him with what they calla self-inflicted gunshot wound to his head.

Byer was in intensive care around 6 p.m. Tuesday night.

In 2010, Byer was convicted in Allegan County of attempted second-degree criminal sexual conduct involving a victim under the age of 13.  He is listed in the Michigan Sex Offender Registry.