Suspect Fleeing on Lawnmower Shoots Self in Hand after Pulling Gun on Mich. Deputy

By Nathan Clark

Source mlive.com

JACKSON COUNTY, MI – Police body camera video shows how an attempted arrest in September quickly escalated.

The footage, obtained through a Michigan Freedom of Information Act request, shows James Mitchell Kerr flee a deputy on a lawnmower, ignore his commands to stop and pull a gun from the mower. The deputy then tases him and Kerr, police reported, shoots himself in the hand.

Kerr is charged with assault with intent to murder, carrying a firearm in the commission of a felony and resisting arrest. A judge sent his case to Jackson County Circuit Court on Wednesday, Nov. 13, after a preliminary examination.

Jackson County Sheriff’s Deputy Robert Henderson had a warrant Sept. 19 for Kerr’s arrest, the sheriff’s office reported. Kerr was wanted for an alleged probation violation for failing to pay child support, according to court records.

Henderson found Kerr, 41, on the riding lawnmower in Leoni Township and told him to get off of it, but he refused, instead accelerating the lawnmower, the video shows.

The deputy briefly chases after Kerr on foot, repeatedly telling him to stop before pulling out his Taser moments before Kerr comes to a stop in a ditch, the video shows.

Kerr says he is getting off and puts his hands in the air as he steps off the riding mower. As Henderson warns Kerr he will be tased if he attempts to run away, Kerr walks back to the lawnmower and reaches next to the seat and pulls out what is clearly a black handgun, the video shows.

Henderson fires his Taser and Kerr falls behind the lawnmower with a groan a second before a gunshot is heard. As Kerr fell behind the lawnmower, Henderson dropped the active Taser and pulled his side arm, demanding Kerr drop the gun, the video shows.

The deputy was not injured, but Kerr had shot himself in the hand while being tased, the video shows and police reported.

The body camera video ends with Henderson calling for backup to assist at the scene.

Backup arrived and arrested Kerr, first taking him to Henry Ford Jackson Hospital to be treated for injuries deemed non-life threatening, then to the Jackson County Jail, police said.

Due to the nature of the incident, the sheriff’s office requested the Michigan State Police do the criminal investigation while the sheriff’s office did its own internal investigation, police said.

Kerr was charged Oct. 23, and the investigation into Henderson’s actions found them to be justified with no policy violations observed, according to the sheriff’s office.

An effort Friday to reach the state police for comment was not immediately successful.

“This incident underscores how rapidly a seemingly routine encounter can escalate and the potential dangers deputies face daily,” Jackson County Sheriff Gary Schutte said.

Kerr is scheduled for a pretrial hearing Nov. 22 before Circuit Judge Thomas Wilson.

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