Suspect shot, killed after stabbing officer
Woman told deputy of alleged attacker
Phillip Jackson and Dima Amro
After a woman pointed out her alleged attacker to a Shelby County Sheriff’s Office deputy in Downtown Memphis on Monday morning, the man was later shot and killed.
SCSO Capt. Anthony Buckner said in a media briefing Monday a deputy encountered the suspect while patrolling near 201 Poplar.
Buckner said the deputy believed the suspect might have been involved in an earlier assault when the deputy confronted the suspect.
James Lee Kirkwood, the man killed and identified by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigations, was a registered sex offender who previously violated his registry in 2016 by not reporting to police, according to Shelby County court records. Kirkwood was convicted of rape in 1993.
Kirkwood was being chased by deputies before he brandished a knife and stabbed the deputy in the arm, according to TBI.
The deputy fired at Kirkwood, critically wounding him. He was later pronounced dead at the hospital, according to TBI. Buckner did not say how many shots were fired or if body camera footage is available of the shooting.
Deputies say the shooting occurred at the intersection of Fourth and Poplar. Johnathan Rosemand was near the scene and said he witnessed the shooting.
“He (the suspect) ran towards one of the police officers cutting his arm (with a knife), they tased him, they maced him and the third reaction was gun shots,” Rosemand said.
“When he dropped to the ground they shot him four more times,” he said. “I sat there and actually watched the guy take his last breath.”
Tennessee Bureau of Investigation officers arrived to the scene and will be investigating the shooting. The agency is often called to investigate fatal police shootings.
Shelby County officials say the deputy was transported to Regional One Medical Center in non-critical condition.
A Commercial Appeal reporter is on the scene and we will update this story as more information becomes available.