- The Washington Times - Tuesday, July 19, 2022

Authorities are offering $5,000 for information leading to the recapture of James Howard Jackson, a 19-year-old suspect in a 2021 plot to steal Lady Gaga’s French bulldogs.

The suspect was mistakenly released from custody April 6.

Mr. Jackson was the alleged gunman in the Feb. 24, 2021, attack on Lady Gaga’s dogwalker, Ryan Fischer, in the streets of Los Angeles.

The attack left Mr. Fischer hospitalized with a gunshot wound to the chest, though two of the dogs taken in the incident were later recovered.

The U.S. Marshals Service, which announced the reward Monday, said in a statement that five people were arrested in April in connection with the attack, two of whom were charged as accessories after the fact. 

“Jackson — along with Jaylin White, 19 and Lafayette Whaley, 27 — were all charged with one count of attempted murder, conspiracy to commit robbery and second-degree robbery,” according to the announcement.


SEE ALSO: Juvenile arrested in connection with attacks on Bethesda churches


Almost a year after being arrested, Mr. Jackson was the beneficiary of a clerical error. The Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department inmate database shows that his case was dismissed, leading to his release on April 6. 

At the time, Los Angeles NBC affiliate KNBC-TV reported that “the dismissed charges were to have been replaced by a superseding grand jury indictment … it appeared the superseding case was not entered against Jackson.”

• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.

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