A 44-year-old man faces a charge of second-degree assault after authorities say he used a hammer to beat another man unconscious on Thursday near the Colorado Springs Airport, prompting the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office to issue a shelter-in-place order. 

At about 1:50 p.m., emergency dispatchers received a text message from a man claiming that someone was trying to kill him. Deputies found the victim lying unconscious in a driveway in the 3800 block of Chia Drive and the suspect inside a residence, according to a news release.

Authorities issued a shelter-in-place order because the incident occurred shortly after school was dismissed for the day. Deputies “secured the area to protect children and school buses,” the release states.

The victim regained consciousness and was evaluated by medical personnel. The suspect, Thomas Barton, initially refused to come out of the residence but eventually surrendered without incident, according to the release. 

Deputies arrested Barton and booked him into the El Paso County jail, where he was being held on a $7,000 bond. 

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