Man allegedly brings gun into Allegheny County Jail after arrest; weapon missed during pat-down

ALLEGHENY COUNTY, Pa. — Police say a man brought a loaded gun into the Allegheny County Jail after being taken into custody.

“It’s every officer’s worst nightmare who works there. We have civilians down there, we have other new arrests. Sometimes attorneys, citizens, civilians who work in the building,” the jail employees union president, Brian Englert, told Channel 11.

A Swissvale officer brought Dayvonn Jackson into the jail for a trespassing charge. The Swissvale police chief tells Channel 11 that the officer patted him down, but the weapon was so well-hidden, that he didn’t notice it, and took him to jail.

It wasn’t until Jackson made it to the jail intake area, that police say a bullet fell on the ground, and a jail corrections officer felt the weapon between Jackson’s legs.

“Sometimes people are very good at concealing things. It would be easily missed by a street officer. Coming into that sally port, if he would have sat on the bench to take his shoes off, he could have reached for it and fired,” Englert added.

Investigators say Jackson reached for his waistband, and wouldn’t listen to the officer’s commands. That’s when the officers tased him and began hitting Jackson in the face.

According to officers, Jackson was carrying a ghost gun that was loaded and had a round in the chamber.

Englert praised those officers in the intake area for finding the gun and ensuring it wasn’t fired.

“I consider them heroes for what they did, but they would probably say, ‘Oh stop it, that’s what we do every day here,’” he added.

Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW

©2024 Cox Media Group