Jamael Lowery to be charged with two counts of assault with a deadly weapon, assault on a Peace Officer with a deadly weapon, brandishing, vandalism and resisting arrest

On September 12, 2016 at approximately 1:21 p.m., Officers from the Eureka Police Department were dispatched to the vicinity of Harris and S Street on a report of a physical fight between a man and a woman.  As the incident progressed the male suspect vandalized two vehicles with a large knife then became involved in a verbal altercation with several citizens that turned physical when he tried to assault two of them with the knife.




The male suspect's location was updated by citizens and the officers spotted the suspect running on Harris and into the yard of a residence near Harris and O Streets.  Officers arrived quickly and set-up a perimeter around a large, heavily vegetated gully.  Officers surrounded the gulley and ultimately located Lowery at the bottom closer to Hodgson Street. Officers announced their presence and told Lowery to stop. Lowery fled back N/B through the gulley with the knife in his hand ignoring all commands to stop.  

Two officers that were on Harris Street moved into of the gully to intercept the male.  One of the officers was armed with a less lethal shotgun (bean bag rounds) while the other officer provided lethal cover.  While moving through the steep terrain the officer with the less lethal shotgun encountered the suspect at a very close distance.  The male suspect was still holding the knife and walking at the officer.  The officer gave commands to the suspect to drop the knife, which he failed to comply with, creating a situation where the officer chose to deploy the less lethal rounds in an attempt to stop the threat.  The suspect was hit in the torso with three rounds from the less lethal shotgun causing him to drop the knife and fall to the ground.  The suspect was then taken into custody without further incident. The deployment of the less lethal shotgun mostly likely saved the suspect's life as the officers would have been justified to use lethal force to stop this threat to save their own lives.  After the incident the suspect told the officer he just wanted to die.

Medical aid was summoned to the scene.  The suspect walked out of the gully under his own power and was transported by City Ambulance to St. Joseph Hospital for medical clearance prior to jail.  The suspect was admitted to the hospital for observations due to an abdominal injury incurred during the incident.

The suspect is identified as Jamael Lowery, 28 from Eureka.  The investigating officer will author a warrant for Lowery's arrest once he is cleared from the hospital for the following charges: two counts of assault with a deadly weapon (2 citizen victims), assault on a Peace Officer with a deadly weapon, brandishing, vandalism and resisting arrest.