RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA : Man, 32, Barricades Himself in Home

A 32-year-old man armed with a handgun barricaded himself in his home for more than four hours until early Monday morning after an argument with his wife, authorities said.

Benjamin Venable, a former Orange County sheriff’s deputy, was coaxed out of the home by sheriff’s deputies shortly before 1 a.m. Monday and was admitted to the Community Psychiatric Center in Laguna Niguel for observation, Sheriff’s Lt. Richard J. Olson said.

Olson said Venable had recently lost his job and was reportedly intoxicated when the outburst began around 8:30 p.m., when neighbors reported hearing a gunshot at the home on 19 Azalea Lane.

No one was injured, and no charges have been filed pending an investigation. The gun had accidentally discharged, and the bullet landed in a sofa, Olson said.

Venable’s three, elementary school-age children from a previous marriage were in the house with their stepmother at the time and escaped to safety when deputies arrived, Olson said.

“He didn’t try to hold them hostage or anything like that,” Olson said.

A neighbor who asked that her name be withheld said that while Venable was in the house alone, he shouted questions at deputies outside, asking if they were responsible for his losing his job.