BY MATT HERSH

Salem police and the Southern New Hampshire Special Operations Unit arrested a local man after he fired a gun in his home on Tuesday, July 17.

Police responded to 10 Juniper Road around 1 p.m., where they arrested Raymond Burling, 43, for reckless conduct with a firearm, a Class A felony, after neighbors reported hearing a loud argument and then a gunshot.

“Our officers tried to make contact by phone but they weren’t able to,” said Deputy Police Chief William Ganley. “So we set up a perimeter and tried to get people out of the way.”

Police spoke with several neighbors who said they were certain the noise they heard was a gunshot and that Burling was armed.

After repeated attempts to contact Burling using cell phones and megaphones, a woman came out of the residence, Ganely said.

“She told us that he was, in fact, armed and that he fired a round,” he said.

The situation was a standoff until police were contacted by a friend of Burling, who was in contact with him by phone. 

Via the friend’s cell phone, police were able to talk Burling into coming out of the home.

When Burling came out, he moved as if to return to the house, and an officer tackled him.

“After that, he put up no real resistance,” Ganley said.

SWAT team members were able to respond quickly because they were already nearby training. They responded within minutes of the call.

Ganley said he couldn’t reveal what police took from the home but confirmed that evidence was confiscated.  

Ganley said his department was already familiar with Burling, having responded to his residence in the past. Still, he said, the situation turned out reasonably well.

“We’re happy about the way things went, all things considered,” Ganley said. “Ultimately, the best thing is that we were able to handle this incident and no one got hurt.”

Burling’s bail was set at $10,000 cash.