The fatal shooting of a Prince George man by a U.S. Border Patrol agent has been determined lawful and justified.
Cases like the fatal shooting of the man by the Sumas border near Bellingham are handled by the Whatcom County Prosecuting Attorney, David S. McEachran. On May 19th, McEachran concluded that the situation was extremely dangerous for the agent involved and all the other officers in the area, saying the assault could have resulted in the man disarming the agent and harming him or the other officers.
As a result, McEachran determined that the agent’s actions were reasonable and that the shooting was justified.
Jamison Childress in undated photo. (Photo Credit: Facebook)
The man was identified as Jamison E. Childress, a 20-year-old Prince George resident. Childress was wanted for the murder of a young man in Calgary on March 7th.
The incident occurred on Thursday, March 19th, starting when a U.S. Border Patrol Agent heard a border sensor go off and went to investigate. When the agent found Childress and started speaking to him, Childress backed up and started going through his backpack. McEachran reports that Childress did not cooperate when the agent directed him to show his hands, but soon pulled out a can of bear spray and seemed about to aim it at the agent. When the agent ordered Childress to drop the can, the man ran from the agent and disappeared into thick blackberry bushes.
Photo Credit: Google Maps
The agent then radioed his position and Childress’s direction of travel, noting that the male was mumbling and seemed to be incoherent. Officers from Sumas Police Department responded as well, seeing Childress coming out of thick brush on the road. “The male appeared to be walking very aggressively and had blood on his face and was holding a can of bear spray in his hand,” said McEachran’s report.
Two police officers and a Border Patrol Agent boxed the subject in with their vehicles. The report says that Childress then turned to the officers and started walking aggressively to them while pointing the bear spray can at them. “He was screaming, “Kill me”, “Just [expletive deleted] shoot me!” The officers backed their cars up, and the man turned to the Border Patrol Agent who had gotten out of his vehicle.
Photo Credit: TranBC
The agent identified himself as border control, and as Childress kept advancing, the agent backed up until he had nowhere else to go. Childress had yelled numerous profanities, and the agent said that if the man sprayed the bear spray, he’d have to shoot him. Childress briefly backed up.
The report says that Childress suddenly lunged at the agent and, at close range, released the bear spray towards the agent’s face. The agent fired his gun twice, hitting the man in the head area with one of the shots. McEachran notes that the bear spray had struck the agent, causing him to cough, wipe his eyes, and have difficulty seeing.
The cause of Childress’s death was determined to be a gunshot wound to the head.
*Cover Photo Credit: Facebook*
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