Fired Instructor Held After Gun Battle

An instructor who had been fired by the Saddleback Valley Unified School District was arrested by Orange County sheriff’s deputies after a brief gun battle at his Mission Viejo home, officers reported. A man identified as Ronald Sklar, 42, was jailed on suspicion of attempted murder after he stood deputies off for 45 minutes before surrendering, sheriff’s Lt. Dick Olson said. The incident began earlier in the afternoon when Sklar visited school district offices, complained about his discharge to an employee, and demanded addresses and telephone numbers of school board members, officials said. The employee noticed a concealed weapon and called deputies afterr Sklar left. Four deputies went to Sklar’s house about 9 p.m. with a warrent for his arrest, Olsen said, adding that when they arrived, they knocked on his window and displayed their badges. But Sklar pulled a gun from a shoulder holster and fired several shots through the window. An unidentified deputy reeturned two shots. Deputies retreated and called a SWAT team; after the team arrived, three unidentified juveniles emerged from the house and ultimately Sklar walked out, Olsen said. One detective was treated for glass-fragment injuries and released. There were no other injuries.