A Pierce County homeowner forced a stranger out of his house before holding him at gunpoint Sunday night after a family dog sniffed out an intruder nobody had invited in. Deputies were called to the Parkland neighborhood along 12th Street around 8 p.m. for what started as a report of a man sleeping on a neighbor's back porch, but it quickly turned into something far more alarming once residents realized the man had made his way inside their home.
According to FOX 13 Seattle, residents initially believed the intruder might be a relative, but it was their dog that first alerted them something was wrong. That instinct turned out to be right: the family soon discovered a strange man standing in their kitchen, a detail attributed to Deputy Carly Cappetto in the station's reporting.
Resident Forces Suspect Out, Then Holds Him at Gunpoint
Body-camera footage captured the resident physically forcing the suspect out of the house, the outlet reported. From there, the homeowner detained the man, identified as 40-year-old Paul Maestry-Williams, with a shotgun until deputies could intervene and take him into custody. Law enforcement officers also reported hearing shouting coming from another home down the road as the situation unfolded, according to the same account.
The resident who confronted Maestry-Williams declined to give an on-camera interview Monday, per the station's report. Neighbors in the Parkland area were otherwise left to piece together just how close the encounter came to escalating further before deputies showed up.
Suspect Pleads Not Guilty, Bail Request Denied
Maestry-Williams pleaded not guilty in court Monday following the home invasion allegations in Pierce County. A judge denied a defense request to release him without bail, and the judge also barred cameras from showing the defendant's face during the proceedings, per the same account.
“Home invasion” is a common description, not the name of a standalone Washington offense. State law defines residential burglary as unlawfully entering or remaining in a dwelling with intent to commit a crime against a person or property inside; it is a class B felony. First-degree burglary has additional requirements, including that the person be armed with a deadly weapon or assault someone during the offense. The statute describes possible legal categories, but the account of Maestry-Williams’s court appearance does not specify the charge. Washington’s burglary statute sets out those distinctions.
Prosecutors raised concerns about risks to local residents tied to the case. The prosecuting attorney said, “The state does have concern for community safety given the nature of these allegations,” according to FOX 13 Seattle's report. The judge set Maestry-Williams's bail at $3,000, and he is barred from returning to the Parkland neighborhood if he does post bail.
Washington law also addresses defending people and property against violent crime, allowing protection by “reasonable means necessary.” That provision does not by itself establish whether a particular use of force—or a detention after an intruder has been removed from a home—was legally justified; that depends on the circumstances. In this case, the homeowner’s actions are described in the initial account, but no court finding about the homeowner’s conduct is reported. The state’s self-defense statute sets out the standard.
Maestry-Williams is expected back in court later this month, though the exact date of that hearing has not been detailed in reporting so far. For now, the Parkland neighborhood along 12th Street is left processing a close call that started with a barking dog and ended with the suspect detained outside the family's home.
