A 49-year-old Bellevue man remained incarcerated Tuesday in the Blaine County jail for allegedly pointing a small handgun at a Bellevue Marshal’s deputy during a DUI arrest last week.
Hailey Police Chief Jeff Gunter said quick action on the part of Deputy Kyle Skuza prevented the man from firing the gun before other police arrived to help disarm him.
The Hailey Police Department is under contract to provide police services to the city of Bellevue.
Gunter said Tad Shawn Mutum had the gun hidden in a cell phone case when he was arrested on a DUI charge on Tuesday, June 18, and was taken to the Blaine County jail. When Mutum was being removed from the police vehicle, he allegedly pulled the gun out and pointed it at Skuza.
“Kyle ended up knocking the gun out of the way, sweep kicks him down and sits on him until backup arrived,” Gunter said. “It could have been a very bad incident.”
Mutum has been charged with the felony crime of assault on a policeman. He is also charged with the misdemeanor crimes of DUI and carrying a concealed weapon while under the influence. His bond has been set at $75,000.
Skuza wrote in a probable-cause affidavit that the incident began shortly after 5 p.m. when he saw Mutum driving erratically in a white 2008 Ford F-350 pickup near the intersection of Lookout Lane and Main Street in southern Bellevue. He wrote that he made a traffic stop, smelled alcohol on Mutum and initiated standard field-sobriety tests.
Skuza wrote that Mutum failed most of the tests and was placed under arrest.
Skuza wrote that he was uneasy about the situation because while transporting Mutum to jail he heard him say “this is not going to end well.”
“I asked Mutum what he meant by that comment and Mutum did not reply,” Skuza wrote.
Skuza wrote that Mutum pulled the gun out while Mutum was getting out of the patrol vehicle at the jail.
“I observed the barrel of a handgun in Mutum’s right hand,” Skuza wrote. “Mutum continued to turn the handgun towards me, pointing the barrel of the handgun at the center of my body. In extreme fear for my safety and life, and before Mutum could fire the handgun, I began pushing his right hand away from me.
“I also began pushing Mutum backwards in an aggressive manner and while pushing Mutum backwards I was able to sweep Mutum’s left leg with my right leg, causing him to fall onto his back. Mutum still had a hold of the handgun behind his back, so I put my body weight on his person and immediately radioed for backup. Blaine County jail deputies responded and were eventually able to remove the handgun from Mutum and he was secured.”
Skuza further wrote that before Mutum “was disarmed I was in extreme fear of my safety and life. I felt that Mutum was trying to kill me and had I not forcefully pushed him away he would have fired his handgun at me.”
Skuza described the gun in his report as a “North America Arms .22 long rifle caliber revolver that had five live hollow-point rounds loaded inside of it.”
