Agee and a second officer were in the process of transporting 24-year-old Latwan Smith in the backseat of their squad car to the Hinds County Detention Center after arresting Smith on a domestic violence charge.
At an intersection less than a mile from the center, police said Smith complained he was hot and couldn’t breathe, and the officers agreed to roll down a back window for him.
Smith then reached outside the window, opened the car door and fled. Agee, a new officer, managed to catch up with the suspect and ended up struggling with Smith in five feet of water in a canal behind a Sonic Drive-In.
The suspect allegedly managed to grab the officer’s gun, shoot him and run into the nearby woods where he was arrested about 45 minutes later.
The TASER death of 30-year-old Jermaine Williams in Cleveland during the predawn hours of July 23 also occurred in a struggle with police officers.
The two officers involved in the local incident were responding to a call about people loitering in the 700 block of Cross Street. During the investigation, the policemen spotted what they believed was a bag containing cocaine atop a vehicle where the people were gathered, according to Cleveland Police Chief “Buster” Bingham.
The officers then asked everyone for identification. Williams allegedly grabbed the bag moments later and hightailed it. One of the officers pursued him and finally caught up with him at the intersection of Lucy Seaberry Boulevard and Cross Street.
The man resisted arrest and the officer used a TASER on him. Nonetheless, Williams remained combative and attempted to take the TASER from the officer, according to Bingham’s statement. A second officer arrived and also used his TASER.
After being handcuffed, the officers noted that Williams needed medical treatment and called an ambulance. In addition, they attempted to treat Williams while waiting for the emergency medical team to arrive.
But it was all to no avail. The suspect died.
Bolivar County Coroner Dr. Nathaniel Brown said a preliminary autopsy report showed Williams had cocaine in his urine and alcohol in his blood.
The incident in Jackson illustrates what could have possibly happened had Williams managed to get the TASER away from the Cleveland officer.
Either being under the influence of alcohol or high on cocaine can leave someone totally out of control. Getting into a scuffle with someone under the influence of alcohol or drugs can easily become a life-threatening experience.
We know. During our work in the street ministry several years ago, we were involved in a struggle with a man, named Jeremiah, who was high on cocaine. Let’s just say it’s a miracle that we’re able to write this editorial today.
In view of the danger the Cleveland officers could well have been facing; the fact the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation is probing the Cleveland incident; four law enforcement officers have been killed in Mississippi this year, and the case apparently will be aired in court, we all would do well to wait until the whole story is brought out before making up our minds about what all did happen here in our town.