Prosecutors say Vance Lee threatened his parents, fired at a drone and had 10 guns inside the home.

MILWAUKEE, Wis. — A 33-year-old Milwaukee man is facing 16 criminal charges after police say he threatened to kill his parents, barricaded himself inside their home and surrendered after a roughly 14-hour standoff March 28.

Vance Lee was charged April 2 in a case that began as a family dispute and grew into a large police response near 68th Street and West Brentwood Avenue. The charges include failure to comply with an officer, disorderly conduct, endangering safety by use of a dangerous weapon, criminal damage to property, two counts tied to firearm silencers and 10 counts of firearm possession by an out-of-state felon.

The criminal complaint says Lee was at his parents’ home March 27 and March 28 when the threats started. Investigators said he walked downstairs with a handgun in his waistband and a rifle, then threatened to shoot and kill his parents. Police said he later called his brother and said, “We are all dying today.” His parents told officers they stayed in their bedroom because they feared what their son might do. They also told police Lee said he “would kill everyone and hide in the basement ready for anything” if officers came to the house.

Police were sent to the home about 8:44 a.m. March 28. Officers ordered Lee to come outside, but investigators said he refused and barricaded himself in the residence. SWAT officers, crisis negotiators and armored vehicles were brought to the scene as the standoff stretched through the day. Prosecutors said officers also sent a drone into the house. Lee then fired a shotgun from the second floor, striking and disabling the drone, according to the complaint. No injuries were reported in the accounts reviewed for the case.

After hours of negotiations and commands, officers deployed gas inside the home. Lee surrendered around 10:19 p.m., police said. Investigators later searched the residence and reported finding one shotgun, four rifles, five handguns, body armor, about 27 magazines, roughly 800 rounds of ammunition and five suppressors or suppressor parts. Police said Lee admitted he had been drinking, smoking meth for two days, barricading the home and firing a shotgun inside during the standoff.

The case also points to a prior conviction that prosecutors say barred Lee from having guns. Court records cited by officials list a felony burglary conviction in California. That record is central to the 10 felon-in-possession counts filed in Milwaukee County. Prosecutors said the recovered guns and weapon parts are tied to the standoff, the threats described by Lee’s parents and the damage to the police drone. If convicted on all counts, Lee faces more than 140 years in prison and fines above $350,000.

Lee’s parents told officers they loved their son but could not continue to live with his threats, according to the complaint. Investigators said both parents appeared fearful and nervous when they spoke with police. The dispute was described in a search warrant as beginning after relatives accused Lee of stealing pots and pans from the kitchen. Authorities have not said what led the argument to grow into an armed barricade, and no plea had been entered in the case at the time of the initial reports.

Bond was set at $50,000 on April 2. A judge ordered Lee not to possess dangerous weapons, firearms or body armor and placed him under drug testing conditions. His next listed court date was April 7 for a preliminary hearing.

Author note: Last updated Monday, April 27, 2026.