Details emerge on circumstances that led to fatal standoff

Officer Jamie Buenting

Updated at 2:40 p.m.: The man accused of shooting and killing a Rockwell City police officer this morning had previously spent time in several Iowa correctional facilities and was sought by police for allegedly assaulting his mother.

Corey A. Trott is accused of firing a single gunshot that hit Jamie Buenting, 37 , a member of the Rockwell City Police Department. Buenting was one of several officers with a regional Special Emergency Response Team who responded to a 911 call that was placed at about 9:30 p.m. Thursday.

This morning’s shooting marks the second time this week that Trott’s alleged actions shocked the small northern Iowa community, Calhoun County Attorney Tina Meth-Farrington said. Law enforcement had been looking for Trott since Sunday night, when he allegedly assaulted his mother, who is 64.

Corey Trott

Trott’s mother was taken to the Stewart Memorial Community Hospital in Lake City after the reported assault, Meth-Farrington said.

Law enforcement officers had been watching the house at 502 Pleasant St. after Trott reportedly fled the scene. Officers also were trying to locate Trott to arrest him for assault causing serious injury, Meth-Farrington said.

“The fact that he fled the scene on Sunday night created concern for a lot of people in the community,” Meth-Farrington said. Law enforcement officials “were quite shocked when they got the call that said he had come back home.”

Officers went to the house on Pleasant Street to arrest Trott Thursday night after a neighbor saw lights on there, Meth-Farrington said. In addition to the murder charge, Trott has been charged with his mother’s assault, she said.

At about 1:15 a.m. today, officers made contact with Trott, who was inside his house, said Michael Motsinger, special agent in charge with the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.  At about 1:40 a.m., a single shot was fired from the house, he said.

The shot struck Buenting. He was taken to an area hospital, where he later died, Motsinger said. (Correction: A previously reported time of death was incorrect.) Buenting is survived by his wife and two young children.

After Buenting was shot, the regional law enforcement team called in Iowa State Patrol.

Iowa State Patrol negotiators made contact with Trott at 5:29 a.m., Iowa State Patrol Sgt. Scott Bright said. At 5:32 a.m, Trott emerged from the house and was taken into custody.  He has been charged with first-degree murder.

In 2008, Trott, 32, pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree harassment, according to online court records. The negotiated plea came after he was charged in 2007 with intimidation with a dangerous weapon, a felony.

Trott was fined in the case and put on probation, according to online court records. A four-year prison sentence on the two charges was suspended.   In 2009, Trott’s probation officer filed a complaint and Trott’s probation was revoked. Trott was sentenced to serve four years in prison.

Trott was released in January 2011, but racked up three disciplinary reports for fights with inmates, said Fred Scaletta, assistant director with the Iowa Department of Corrections. He was moved between three facilities, spending time at the Fort Dodge Correctional Institution, the Iowa Medical & Classification Center in Coralville and the Iowa State Penitentiary in Ft. Madison.

Trott’s criminal record stretched beyond Iowa; in 2007 he pleaded guilty to a felony charge of possession of more than one pound of marijuana after a May 2006 arrest in Seward County, Neb. He was sentenced to community service and three years of probation on the charge.

In 2004 Trott was sentenced to two days in jail after pleading guilty to a domestic assault charge in Calhoun County, Iowa.

Motsinger declined to say how many officers and responders arrived at the scene on Thursday night or what kind of gun was used in the shooting, citing the ongoing investigation. Motsinger also wouldn’t say whether Buenting was wearing protective gear or body armor.

Buenting began his law enforcement career in 1999. He had been a member of the Rockwell City Police Department for eight years, and had served on a regional Special Emergency Response Team.

Buenting was the 170^th Iowa law enforcement officer to die in the line of duty sent 1889, according to the Iowa Department of Public Safety records.

Buenting, a skilled marksman, was also an instructor with the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy in Johnston. According to the school’s website, Buenting spent 700 hours on the range attending numerous firearms courses and training sessions.

Buenting had been scheduled to teach a fire arms class on Saturday.

Article written by Register reporters Grant Rodgers and Katherine Klingseis.