Man jailed for pulling gun at Richland bar. Customers disarmed and held him for police
Bail is set at $100,000 for a Kennewick man accused of threatening to shoot a father and two sons at a Richland bar.
Jon D. Miller Jr., 38, was in Lee’s Tahitian at the Uptown Shopping Center about 1:45 a.m. Sunday when he pulled out a .45 caliber handgun, Richland police said.
Court documents filed in the case do not explain if he threatened anyone inside the bar but a woman who was in the tavern ran out, telling others that a man had a gun.
A father and two sons heard what was happening and went inside to confront Miller, who pulled the gun from his waistband and pointed it at the three of them, said court documents. Miller reportedly told the men there was “one in the pipe,” referring to a bullet in the chamber.
Miller left and the three men followed him out. After Miller pulled out the gun again and threatened them, the father and one of his sons pinned Miller against a wall until a police officer arrived, said the documents.
They handed the officer the gun and held Miller on the ground until more officers arrived.
Miller was wearing a fanny pack that police said was full of a “large amount” of cocaine, crack, heroin and fentanyl, along with packaging and scales.
Court documents said Miller was a convicted felon and not allowed to own a gun, but didn’t say what his previous crime was.
Miller was booked into the Benton County jail on suspicion of three counts of second-degree assault, delivery of a controlled substance and illegal gun possession.
Richland police have increased patrols in area of the Uptown Shopping Center in response to fights and assaults, the department said in a Facebook post.
Michael Perkins, 36, who was homeless, was killed at the shopping center Nov. 16 after he defended a woman from Isiah N. Rodriguez, 28. Rodriguez has pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. His sentencing is Jan. 29.
Two weeks later, Jay R. Bazan II, 23, allegedly threatened people inside the Daisy Ranch Saloon with a gun. He is charged with second-degree assault. His trial is March 10.