According to a press release yesterday, police were dispatched to the Pleasure Marina on Ottawa Drive around 1:20 a.m. at the request of a relative who told police that Richard Titzmann, 54, formerly of North Kingstown, was threatening suicide. The relative advised caution because Titzmann owned a gun.

Police arrived and found the man in his boat holding what appeared to be a firearm in his hand. The officers deployed around the boat and began to speak with the man, to get him to drop the weapon and get some professional help.

Police said that irritated the man who said he wanted to be left alone to end his own life. Police continued to talk with him to get him to calm down, and then pleaded with him to drop the weapon. At this point, they said, the man moved toward the cabin entrance, still agitated with the weapon in his hand.

Police managed to hit the man with a taser and he went to the ground and lost control of the gun. Police subdued the man and secured the weapon.

Titzmann was taken to Kent Hospital for medical treatment and evaluation before he was brought back to headquarters and charged with possession of a firearm without a permit and disorderly conduct. After arraignment by a justice of the peace, Titzmann was taken back to Kent for further treatment.

“This situation clearly could have had a very different and tragic result,” said Warwick Police Chief Colonel Stephen McCartney. “It is another clear illustration of the challenges that police officers face in dealing with persons in difficulty suffering from mental health problems.”

McCartney said all of the police officers involved are to be commended for their bravery and professionalism in defusing “a deadly situation without any serious injury.”