HOUMA, La. — At least 36 evidence markers sat outside a home in Houma Tuesday morning after what State Police report was a shooting involving a man and police.
“At least, I’m saying about 50, 60 rounds if not more,” neighbor Laterrance Harris said.
Harris lives across the street from the home on the 200 block of Polk Street that Houma Police were called to about an armed man involved in a domestic disturbance Monday night. Harris got a knock on the door from police.
“They asked us to leave for maybe an hour. Me and my daughter left out the back door and got in the truck and by the time we made it to the driveway they started firing off at each other,” Harris said.
State Police said shortly after officers arrived, Gary Vanleuven, 51, of Houma started shooting.
Houma police officers shot back. Vanleuven, who had been shot, then barricaded himself inside. Harris and his ten-year-old daughter spent the next five hours in his truck.
“I didn’t know if it was a hostage situation, if there were people being held in the house, or what was going on,” Houma resident Shelley Matrana said.
Matrana does a lot of community work and doesn’t live too far away from where the shooting happened.
“I just knew city blocks were being blocked off and no one was able to get into their homes at this time,” Matrana said.
After what state police described as a lengthy standoff, Vanleuven surrendered and was taken to the hospital.
State police said no officers were injured and one else was in the home when officers got there.
“It’s a daily now, like every day we’re waking up to new events,” Matrana said.
Growing up in Houma, Matrana said whatever the circumstances, crime seems to happen more frequently.
“It’s scary. This is our hometown. We have a family business here,” Matrana said. “We just don’t know what the day has in store sometimes.”
A crime lab team was on the scene for hours, collecting evidence and taking pictures of the house, shot-out car windows, and all those evidence markers.
Watching it happen from his porch, Harris is still in disbelief.
“He’s a cool dude. I talk to him about his cars he talks to me about my dogs, but I guess you never know what people are going through, you know,” Matrana said.
State police said a list of charges are pending, once Vanleuven is released from the hospital.