WS Chronicle

A video making rounds on social media has the community questioning whether officers with the Winston-Salem Police Department (WSPD) used excessive force to apprehend a suspect.  

Here’s what we know: on Monday, Feb. 10, just after 11 a.m., the WSPD received a call about a breaking-and-entering in progress in the 1400 block of East Fourth Street. As officers arrived on the scene, the suspect, Jahmeik Jacobs, fled the area on foot. Officers engaged in a foot pursuit and a WSPD K-9 was deployed near the intersection of Martin Luther King Jr. Drive and Fifth Street.  

In the video, which was recorded on a cellphone and has been shared over 100 times on Facebook, Jacobs, who is a Black man, is seen trying to allude police by running away. It appears that Jacobs surrenders when he stops running and holds his arms out to be handcuffed. At the same time, a K-9 is seen running past Jacobs. The K-9 handler, standing next to Jacobs in the video, seems to give a command at which point the K-9 attacked Jacobs.  

Jacobs was bitten on his forearm and transported to a local hospital where he refused medical treatment. Jacobs was taken into custody and charged with misdemeanor housebreaking, larceny and misdemeanor resist, delay and obstruct. He was released on a written promise to appear. 

According to the WSPD, the command given by the K-9 handler was to return to his side, which is known as recall. At the same time Jacobs was told to “Get on the ground now,” so he could be taken into custody. The WSPD noted that the K-9 handler only communicates commands with his dog in Czech. Therefore, if you are not fluent in the Czech language, you may not understand the commands.  

In a statement issued Thursday morning by the WSPD, based on their initial investigation, the K-9 acted out of character.  “The dog appears to have perceived his handler’s non-verbal and verbal commands as an order to engage Mr. Jacobs. The WSPD K-9 handler attempted to stop the dog from biting Mr. Jacobs and was unable to grab him in time,” the statement continued.  

“Our police K-9s are an extremely valuable tool and have been utilized to find missing persons, locate drugs, and apprehend offenders. While these K-9s are valuable assets to our department and undergo intensive and rigorous training, we must also acknowledge when they make a mistake. In this instance, our K-9 should not have bitten Mr. Jacobs. We regret this occurred and we are fortunate that Mr. Jacobs only had minor injuries.  

“Trust between our officers, our K-9 partners, and the community is essential to effective policing and public safety. We are dedicated to ensuring these highly trained K-9 teams operate with professionalism and precision.” 

The WSPD has opened an internal investigation and will review training and communication protocols to reinforce best practices among officers and K-9 handlers to maintain and strengthen trust within the community.  

This is a developing story. Visit wschronicle.com for more updates.