Assailant puts gun to officer’s head; Oxford police able to disarm

Published 5:33 pm Monday, March 4, 2024

Oxford Chief of Police Jeff McCutchen said officers were reminded why no call is “routine” after having dealt with a woman who allegedly pressed a gun to an officer’s head.

“This incident should remind everyone why law enforcement says nothing is ever routine,” the chief said. “There’s a reason why we stay on alert. There’s a reason why we take every call seriously. There’s a reason why more than one officer shows up on a stop or a call.”

The March 3 incident began right before 2 a.m. when the Oxford Police Department responded to the Double Quick parking lot on a disturbance call. An initial officer arrived to observe that a very large crowd had gathered.

While walking the parking lot, the officer saw a fight between two males occurring next to one of the gas pumps. The officer headed over to break up the fight, pulling on the one male who was then on top of the other person.

It was then the officer described feeling a “cold, metal object pressed” to his or her temple. The officer then quickly turned and removed the firearm from the hands of the suspect, Jacqueline Denise Giles, 36, of Oxford.

Giles was then taken into custody without further incident. The gun ended up being a weapon stolen from Oxford in 2020.

Giles was arrested and booked for Aggravated Assault on a Law Enforcement Officer and Possession of a Stolen Firearm. She was given a bond of $275,000 by the Municipal Court judge.

“This incident could have been deadly if not for the calm response of our officers,” added the chief. “This is now twice in less than two weeks that a call could have resulted in a tragedy.

“I’m proud of our officers and their dedication. We will continue to work hard to keep violent people out of this community.”