December 16, 2011

Police: Man told Calif. cops to shoot

Suspect continually reached toward his waistband as though he had a gun

By Alayna Shulman
Record Searchlight

REDDING, Calif. — A Redding man tried to trick officers into thinking he had a gun Wednesday morning so they would shoot him on the Cypress Bridge, police said.

Officers responded around 6:30 a.m. to a call reporting a man with a gun at an apartment complex on Leila Avenue, said Cpl. Shawn McGinnis of the Redding Police Department.

Mindee Jennifer Green, 29, of Redding, told officers the man might be her friend's ex-boyfriend and described the suspect to them, McGinnis said.

She told officers the man was pounding on the door and saying he had a .45-caliber pistol, McGinnis said.

They identified the man as James Lewis Hayes, 28, and spotted him walking down the south sidewalk of the Cypress Bridge shortly after that, McGinnis said.

Hayes instantly told cops to kill him, "or he would kill them," McGinnis said.

"It was all a big bluff," he said. "This is a fairly common phenomenon, unfortunately nowadays, where you have people that are suicidal and they don't want to carry out the act themselves, so they try to provoke the police into shooting them."

McGinnis said Hayes was acting bizarre and continually reached toward his waistband as though he had a gun.

"It became evident to officers the suspect was attempting to provoke them to use deadly force against him," McGinnis said.

More officers, two investigators, a police K-9 dog and its handler, and a supervisor went to the bridge to subdue Hayes, McGinnis said, but Hayes still didn't cooperate.

Officers then tried to search Hayes for weapons, but he wouldn't let them, McGinnis said, so one officer shot him with a stun gun.

After a lengthy struggle, they arrested Hayes, Mc-Ginnis said.

McGinnis said Hayes didn't have a gun.

Hayes was taken to Shasta Regional Medical Center for treatment and then booked into Shasta County jail on suspicion of making threats or violently resisting a peace office and obstructing an officer. McGinnis said Hayes wasn't seriously injured.

Hayes also hadn't complete a previous courtordered work release program, McGinnis said.