
Lindsay Craven | The Yadkin Ripple
Yadkin County Sheriff Ricky Oliver reported that John Trenton Smith, 37, was taken into custody at approximately 9:45 a.m. on Dec. 7 without injury. Oliver said that two sheriff’s deputies were injured during the five-hour standoff when Smith fired shots through his hotel room door. One deputy was grazed by the bullet while the other was hit with debris from the door. Both deputies are listed in good condition. There is no report on the charges that Smith will be facing yet.

Nathan DiBagno | The Elkin Tribune
Officials from the Yadkin County Sheriff’s Office, Jonesville Police Department, Yadkinville Police Department, North Carolina State Troopers, North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Marshall’s office and several fire departments were involved in the standoff that took place at the America’s Best Value Inn in Jonesville on Dec. 7.

Nathan DiBagno | The Elkin Tribune
The Yadkin County Sheriff’s Office takes away John Trenton Smith, 37, who was reportedly residing in the hotel and had Yadkin County and North Carolina authorities in a standoff situation on Dec. 7 from 5:00 a.m. to approximately 9:45 a.m. Two Yadkin County Sheriff’s Deputies were injured in the apprehension of Smith but are reported to be in good condition.
Two Yadkin County Sheriff’s Office deputies were shot at and received minor injuries Friday morning at a Jonesville hotel, leading to a five-hour standoff.
John Trenton Smith, 37, was arrested Friday at about 9:45 a.m. at America’s Home Value Inn off U.S. 21, according to deputies. Sheriff Ricky Oliver did not immediately reveal what the charges were against Smith.
Deputies arrived on scene at about 5 a.m., and the suspect shot at them through the door, according to N.C. Highway Patrol Trooper Kevin Hennelly. Deputies then evacuated the occupied hotel rooms.
One deputy was shot in the shoulder, and another was injured by debris flying after the suspect shot at the deputies through the door, according to Oliver.
Elkin residents Lindsey Whitley and Dalton Buzzard said that deputies knocked on their door at about 7 a.m. and told them to evacuate. They had just looked out the window and saw what looked like about 30 law enforcement vehicles. They said all of the other occupants had been escorted out by deputies earlier, but Buzzard and Whitely were somehow missed during the original evacuation.
Buzzard said he thought that about 12 out of 40 rooms were occupied the night before.
Officials said the Jonesville Police Department received a call at 4:30 a.m. from a Jonesville resident who said that handguns were stolen from her home. The suspect had allegedly stolen guns from his mother’s house and then came to the inn. Deputies had a warrant for his arrest, and had arrived at the inn when they were shot at through the door, officials said.
Oliver said that Smith was a convicted felon. He had been staying at America’s Home Value Inn for a couple of weeks, according to Hennelly with the Highway Patrol.
At about 9:45 a.m., law enforcement officers convinced him to put down his gun and surrender himself. He was then driven away in a sheriff’s office vehicle. Before the vehicle pulled onto the road, members of the media swarmed the vehicle. A picture sent by Tribune news partner WXII show the suspect with his tongue hanging out.
The Yadkin County Sheriff’s Office, the Yadkinville Police Department, the N.C. Highway Patrol, the SBI, and the US Marshall’s office were on scene.








