Officer Kills IL Driver After Being Dragged By Vehicle: Police

ROCK ISLAND, IL — A man was shot and killed by an officer Sunday in the Quad Cities area, with accounts of the incident varying between police and the man’s family, according to reports.

State police identified the man as 22-year-old Jakarta A. Jackson of East Moline.

The shooting occurred around 3:20 p.m. near 12th Street and 24th Avenue in Rock Island, according to state police, who said a Rock Island officer tried to stop a vehicle that was being driven by a person who was attempting to elude law enforcement.

Jackson, who had an active arrest warrant, was driving but eventually stopped the vehicle and fled on foot, before re-entering the vehicle and trying to drive away, police said. The officer opened the driver’s door to detain him but Jackson kept driving, dragging the officer, who then fired his gun and hit Jackson, according to police.

Jackson was taken to a hospital and died, police said, adding the officer was brought to a hospital as well, where he was treated and released.

The Rock Island Police Department initially characterized Jackson as “suspicious” but did not provide any other details about why police initiated the stop, according to the Quad City Times, which reported the officer who shot Jackson had been placed on administrative leave.

Relatives of Jackson recounted second-hand accounts of the shooting to the Times, saying that the vehicle was actually stopped at the time of the incident, and that it was moving but that police broke a window and the vehicle crashed.

Jackson’s niece, Shayia Jackson, was one of over a dozen protesters who gathered Monday at the Rock Island County Justice Center with signs reading “Justice for Jakarta” and “Black Lives Matter,” according to the Times. She told the newspaper her uncle was unarmed during the shooting and that his 3-year-old daughter and 6-year-old nephew were present when it occurred.

She said her uncle was a loving father who played wide receiver for United Township High School, from which he graduated in 2020, the Times reported.

The Rock Island County Integrity Task Force is investigating and reviewing video from in-car and body-worn cameras, according to police.

Anyone with information is asked to call investigators at 309-752-4915, extension 4935.