SWAT standoffs ongoing in Granada Hills, Highland Square, Spokane

A SWAT standoff occurred in Akron's Highland Square on Monday morning involving Thomas Blanton, a 37-year-old man with a history of similar incidents. Blanton was accused of assaulting a woman, who sustained non-life-threatening injuries, before barricading himself in a former barber shop. After hours of negotiation, police deployed tear gas and breached the building, apprehending Blanton, who was armed with a handgun. He faces multiple charges, including felony strangulation and domestic violence. This incident marks a recurrence of Blanton's past legal troubles, including a 2015 standoff where he also resisted police arrest. Meanwhile, a separate standoff in Los Angeles’s Granada Hills involved a man making threats with a knife, but details about that situation remain unclear as police negotiate for his surrender.