Police said the 59-year-old man repeatedly fired at officers during a prolonged standoff that damaged police vehicles and a Glendale home.
GLENDALE, AZ — A 59-year-old man was found dead inside a Glendale home after police said he repeatedly fired at officers during a prolonged barricade Wednesday, damaging police vehicles and drones as nearby residents were ordered to shelter in place.
Police identified the man as Jeffery Peters. The confrontation began around noon Aug. 12 near 75th and Glendale avenues after Peters’ adult daughter reported seeing him at the home on a security camera. Police said an active order of protection required Peters to stay away from the residence, which he shared with his daughter. His daughter called 911 after seeing that he had returned.
Glendale Police Sgt. Justin Ramsay said officers confirmed the order of protection and were familiar with Peters from previous contacts at the home. Police said Peters had a history of possessing firearms, body armor and other protective equipment. Officers tried to communicate with him and persuade him to leave the house, but he remained inside. Police said he had been ordered away from the property after an earlier incident about two weeks before the standoff.
A Glendale police SWAT team arrived by about 2 p.m., and authorities later obtained a search warrant. Police said Peters opened fire when SWAT officers attempted to make contact with him. Investigators said he continued firing at police over roughly two hours, striking several law enforcement vehicles. One armored SWAT vehicle was damaged badly enough that it could no longer operate, police said. Two police drones also were damaged during the confrontation.
Officers returned fire at several points, according to police. Authorities said Peters was seen at times wearing what appeared to be ballistic armor. The sustained exchange led police to bring additional equipment and officers to the neighborhood while residents nearby remained under a shelter-in-place order. Police said no bystanders were injured during the standoff.
As officers worked to contain Peters, SWAT personnel used armored vehicles and equipment to breach portions of the house and limit the area in which he could move, investigators said. The operation caused extensive structural damage to the residence. Later reporting from the scene showed the house had been left unlivable. Authorities said the police action was intended to isolate the armed threat while officers tried to bring the confrontation to an end.
The gunfire stopped around 6 p.m. Police then sent a drone into the residence and found Peters dead from a gunshot wound. Investigators have not determined publicly whether the fatal wound came from police gunfire or was self-inflicted. That question remains part of the investigation, and authorities have not announced a final finding on the circumstances of his death.
One Glendale officer suffered minor injuries and was treated at a hospital, police said. The officer was expected to recover. Authorities said several police vehicles and the two drones were damaged, but no other injuries were reported. The shelter-in-place order imposed during the barricade was lifted after the immediate threat ended.
The standoff also left major damage to the home. Glendale SWAT used a containment tactic involving armored vehicles to reduce the space available to the barricaded man, according to investigators. By Thursday, the residence was described as unlivable. Peters’ daughter, who police said shared the house with him but was protected by the court order, was not injured. Questions remained about responsibility for repairing the property after the police operation.
The Avondale Police Department is leading the investigation on behalf of the West Valley investigative team that reviews critical incidents involving officers. Investigators are examining the exchange of gunfire and Peters’ death. Authorities had not announced by Friday whether Peters was struck by an officer’s shot or died from a self-inflicted wound.
Author note: Last updated Aug. 14, 2026.