By Jessie Stensland / Whidbey News-Times
OAK HARBOR — A homeless man fatally shot by police Sunday had been living in Oak Harbor for about five years.
A deputy with the Island County Sheriff’s Office fired the fatal shots after the man allegedly attempted a carjacking and then tried to steal a gun from the Oak Harbor Walmart Sunday evening, according to police.
The Island County Coroner’s Office identified the man as 36-year-old Richard Joseph Jackson. His cause of death was multiple gunshot wounds to the torso, Coroner Robert Bishop said.
Jackson, who went by the name “Joseph,” had a felony conviction in Island County for eluding police last year in which he was speeding on a motorcycle.
The sheriff’s office hasn’t released the name of the deputy who fired the shots. He is 33 and has been with the department for more than two years. The deputy is on administrative leave, which is standard practice.
The Skagit Multiple Agency Response Team, or SMART, is investigating the shooting; it draws detectives from several Skagit County police agencies.
SMART investigators reported that the Oak Harbor Police Department received a 911 call at about 6:36 p.m. Sunday in which a man, later identified as Jackson, was attempting a carjacking near the Safeway store.
The victim of the carjacking described Jackson as “bloody, disheveled and it looked as if he was reaching for a weapon but no weapon was seen,” according to police.
The attempted carjacking victim escaped without injury.
Jackson then walked into nearby Walmart, stole ammunition and attempted to steal a gun. Store employees reported Jackson had brandished a knife.
Jackson left Walmart and was contacted nearby by Oak Harbor police officers and deputies from the Island County Sheriff’s Office. Jackson failed to comply with the officers’ commands; a deputy fired multiple shots, according to a news release.
The shooting occurred at 6:53 p.m. on the grounds of Oak Harbor Intermediate School, Bishop reported. Jackson was taken to WhidbeyHealth Medical Center in Coupeville and pronounced dead about an hour later.
Bishop said Jackson had injuries in addition to the gunshot wounds, but he can’t tell when they occurred and if they were the source of the blood reported on Jackson before the shooting.
Toxicology results probably won’t be available for months because of a backlog at the state crime lab, the coroner said.
Jackson’s family, who live on the East Coast, were notified Tuesday morning. Jackson moved to Whidbey Island from the East Coast with a relative five years ago, but the relative has since moved back. His family said Jackson was homeless, according to Bishop.
Jackson was charged in Island County Superior Court in March of 2017 with attempting to elude a pursuing police vehicle and reckless driving. The case was resolved this year in district court.
This story originally appeared in the Whidbey News-Times, a sibling paper of The Daily Herald.
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