Standoff in Pendleton ends in arrest
By Terry Murry on Tuesday, September 5th, 2023 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
PENDLETON – Ricky Lee Ellison, 36, is in Umatilla County Jail facing three felony bench warrants for his arrest with a preliminary bond set at $3,020,000. He was involved in a police action Saturday that will probably see more criminal charges added.
Police Chief Chuck Byram said that Ellison, who was armed but had not fired shots, barricaded himself in a vehicle at the Super 8 Motel on Nye Avenue in Pendleton that morning. He reportedly informed police that he did not intend to go to jail and would not be taken alive.
“He is wanted for a number of serious offenses,” Byram said at the time.
The standoff prompted the Pendleton Police Department to call for the Oregon State Police SWAT Team. They showed up in force, as did other area law enforcement including the Umatilla Tribal Police. Byram reported that when Ellison saw the contingent, he apparently found a key inside the car he had taken over, started it and sped off.
Eyewitnesses say he crashed through the fence at Super 8, drove through the neighboring Motel 6 parking lot and took off through Best Western into the fields below. Byram said he was rammed by a police vehicle but kept going until his vehicle was disabled. When Ellison was approached by a K9, he surrendered to police without incident. Byram said there were no injuries.
