Man faces charges for Midvale SWAT standoff

This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

A Midvale man who sparked a SWAT standoff by shooting at cars with an assault rifle is now facing 37 criminal charges.

Salt Lake County prosecutors filed the charges — which include felonies and misdemeanors related to gun use, drugs and other crimes — against Christopher John Dougherty Tuesday. Police arrested Dougherty, 45, in April after he barricaded himself inside a home near 7600 South and 1000 East in Midvale.

Dougherty's charging documents reveal that the incident began when a witness reported seeing him standing outside his home and shooting a rifle at passing cars. The witness said Dougherty fired at least five shots.

When an officer arrived, he heard two more shots from Dougherty's backyard, the documents state. Dougherty then barricaded himself inside his home until SWAT convinced him to come out. After coming outside, the documents add, he asked police "Why are you arresting me, because I'm drunk?"

A search of Dougherty's home turned up 25 guns, more than 100 boxes of ammunition, more than 100 knives and swords and a drug pipe. The documents state that a detective also found "evidence of a vast marijuana cultivation including heat lamps, fertilizer, ventilation, pots containing dried marijuana," and other paraphernalia.

jdalrymple@sltrib.com

Twitter: @jimmycdii