HAMMOND, La. — Little information has been released by Hammond police after an officer allegedly shot a man.
Lionell Jackson was sleeping in is home when Hammond police entered to execute a search warrant, according to Jackson’s lawyer. Daryl K. Washington says Jackson had barely woken up and was still in bed, when a an officer shot him.
“It was not until he heard someone moving around in his home that he realized that someone was inside when he looked up before he could do anything the officer shot him in his face,” Washington said.
Hammond Police say they are investigating an officer-involved shooting. They say detectives were executing a narcotics based search warrant. In a statement, the Hammond Police Department says all officers involved have been placed on administrative leave.
Washington says police did not knock or make their presence known. We’ve asked police what type of search warrant police were executing and if they made their presence known. We have not yet gotten a response to those questions.
In a statement, Hammond Police said Jackson had two active charges for distribution of Schedule II Narcotics for more than 600 suspected fentanyl pills. Washington, who has taken nationally-recognized cases like that of Botham Jean who was shot by an off-duty officer in Texas, says there was no justification for Hammond police’s use of deadly force.
“I know that the narrative would be totally different if there was some kind of justification for why these officers used force. They would’ve said this guy had a gun or he was reaching for something. We haven’t gotten that and the reason we haven’t gotten that is because it didn’t happen,” Washington said.
Washington wants an outside agency to do the investigation.
Hammond police say Jackson will face multiple charges including, intent to distribute. They say they can not release any more information until the investigation is complete.