Apr 18, 2019 3 min read

State police said a Canton Township man held a gun to his wife’s head and barricaded their apartment before a roughly two-hour standoff with police on Tuesday.

Charges including kidnapping and making a terroristic threat were filed against Donald E. Casterline, 51, later in the day.

The trooper who filed charges said patrol units responded about 1:15 p.m. in response to a neighbor’s 911 call. The neighbor had heard banging on the door of the couple’s apartment in a building at the Belvedere Acres complex on Bel Air Drive off Route 40.

Soon after, the couple’s son – who lives in the apartment upstairs from theirs – told troopers in another phone call that his parents “have been talking about a possible future divorce and his father … has not taken it kindly,” according to court papers.

“He overheard his father yelling that he was ‘going to kill her and himself,'” the trooper added. “The son also while standing outside of the door to his father’s apartment attempted entry but was unsuccessful due to a couch being up against the door.”

The son also told police Casterline had threatened to kill his wife if their son came through the door, and he said he could hear his mother crying out for help and saying his father was holding a gun to her head.

Troopers from a Special Emergency Response Team were involved in the standoff, which prompted the closure of a nearby section of Route 40 and a partial evacuation of the area.

A state police spokesman said that afternoon Casterline had released his wife and then spoken to state police before allowing them to take him into custody.

Court papers identified the gun police believe Casterline had used.

“Since the knowledge of the divorce, (the son) has taken it upon himself to remove all firearms from the (apartment), with exception to a .50-caliber Desert Eagle handgun,” the trooper wrote. “A search did reveal that there is in fact a .50-caliber firearm registered to the defendant.”

The alleged victim had also called her daughter-in-law during the incident and left the line open. State police said statements along the lines of “I’m not going to jail,” “You called the cops” and “I’m going to kill you” could be heard when Casterline saw troopers surrounding the building.

Casterline also faces charges of unlawful restraint, false imprisonment, reckless endangerment, aggravated assault and simple assault.

Casterline was arraigned that night remotely from Washington County jail, where he is still being held. District Judge Mark Wilson set bail at $250,000.

Court papers don’t list an attorney for him.