Hermiston man guilty of shooting Pasco police officer during struggle, jury says

A 28-year-old man was found guilty of shooting a Pasco police officer during a struggle.

A jury struggled for three days to determine whether Devontea Wright was responsible for firing Officer Jeremy Jones’ gun and wounding him. This came after a more than weeklong trial that focused on whether Wright pulled the trigger.

The days of deliberations had jurors asking to see the gun and holster used, one juror dismissed and high tensions, according to notes sent to the judge.

While Wright was found guilty of second-degree assault, it was less serious than the first-degree assault that prosecutors had been asking for.

He was also found guilty of resisting arrest, attempting to disarm a police officer and illegally possessing a firearm.

Jurors also added two aggravating factors of using an gun during the assault, and that it was committed against a police officer in the course of his official duties.

These could add to Wright’s official sentence. The hearing to determine how long he will be in prison has not been set.

Jones was helping a U.S. Marshal’s task force arrest people on warrants when he went to the home on 1927 Riverview Drive to arrest Wright on an outstanding Benton County warrant.

Jones spotted Wright in a pickup that had parked outside of the house. After grabbing him and taking him out of the truck, Wright started to fight.

This led to Jones, along with two other officers, piling onto Wright in an attempt to control his hands and legs.

In the fight, Jones’ gun went off and he was shot in the leg.

Prosecutors said that Wright reached for Jones’ gun which was still in the holster and managed to get his finger on the trigger.

While Jones has returned to work, the injury left him with lingering effects, according to prosecutors. He is missing a large amount of muscle in that leg. He needs to use his other leg to compensate.

Wright has maintained his innocence throughout the proceedings, and plans to appeal the conviction, his aunt Jackie Linton told the Herald.

Linton, a member of the Hermiston City Council, said she was just speaking as Wright’s family member.

She noted that Jones initially told the doctor at Kadlec Regional Medical Center that he shot himself, and that Wright’s DNA and fingerprints were never found on the gun. These were included in Wright’s defense attorney’s closing argument.

“I am very disappointed,” she said. “I don’t know how the jury found him guilty. It’s like if you’re Black you don’t have a chance in the judicial system. If you’re Black you’re always going to end up guilty.”

Different versions

Deputy Prosecutor Maureen Astley and defense attorney Michael Vander Sys gave different versions of what happened during the struggle in front of the house.

Astley told the jurors during closing arguments earlier this week that Jones knew Wright would run when he got a glassy “1,000-yard stare.” When he saw the look, he asked for help from other task force officers. As one was approaching, Wright tried to run.

“Officer Jones said it took everything in him to be able to hold on to prevent the defendant from escaping,” she said. “The fight moved from the door of the car to the front yard.”

Kennewick detective Randy McCalmant was one of the people wrestling with Wright as they tried to arrest him.

Jones said McCalmant put his hand on top of Wright’s as he held onto Jones’ gun.

Astley said Wright appeared to be able to get his finger inside the holster and shoot the gun.

“When I came before you in opening statements, I talked about how unbelievable this theory is, that this gun went off in this holster,” Astley said. “But members of the jury, that is exactly what happened in this case.”

After the gun fired, Wright stopped struggling, and Jones rolled off. Two tourniquets were placed on his leg to stem the bleeding and he was rushed to a local hospital.

When investigators found Jones’ duty belt, his gun was still inside. Within weeks of this, Pasco police changed every one of their department issued holsters to prevent something similar.

“Officer Jeremy Jones never thought his day would end like this, screaming in pain as (task force officer) McCalmant packed his wound with gauze,” she said. “Everything that happened in this case is due to the defendant’s actions and the defendant’s choices.”

Astley said it would have been possible for Wright’s DNA not to transfer onto the textured rubber grip of the trigger or to the holster.

Vander Sys point out in his closing argument that no one saw the gun be fired. He noted even Wright was surprised when he heard the shot.

He said the officers effectively testified that they “didn’t do it. Therefore he must have done it.”

He noted that no DNA was found, and officers presented conflicting details about where Wright was and how the struggle happened.

“So when you’re looking at something and deciding if something happened and you have reasonable doubt, DNA is really strong evidence,” Vander Sys said. “DNA can’t lie. You can’t fake it. It’s not human so there’s no human factor like error or mistake. It’s science.”

In his closing arguments, he presented three possible versions of events. He noted that Jones could have accidentally fired the gun. He noted that Jones told a doctor that he had shot himself.

“What is the best evidence that Officer Jones shot himself, he said he did,” Vander Sys said. “He stated that he pulled the gun out from his holster when the other person grabbed his hand and the trigger was somehow pulled during this process.”

He said that Jones has hired a lawyer to sue the holster manufacturer and he has a financial interest in not being the one responsible for firing the shot.

He also said that McCalmant could have accidentally pulled the trigger when they were struggling. He noted a cut on the detective’s finger that appeared after the struggle.

His final suggestion was that McCalmant’s radio antenna got caught. He noted that the antenna appeared broken after the struggle.

This story was originally published October 15, 2023 at 5:00 AM.