MALL CHAOS: Chaotic Taser Deployment and Physical Struggle Outlined in Tutu Park Mall Arrest
A July 2023 booking photograph of Janelle Jackson provided by the Virgin Islands Police Department. Jackson was recently rearrested on Thursday, May 28, 2026, following a violent, physical altercation with law enforcement officers at the Tutu Park Mall on St. Thomas. She currently faces multiple local charges including aggravated assault and battery, simple assault, disturbing the peace, and delaying or obstructing an officer.
By JOHN McCARTHY / St. Croix Sun Staff Writer
CHARLOTTE AMALIE — A known mental health patient faces multiple assault and obstruction charges following a violent, prolonged struggle with Virgin Islands Police Department officers at the Tutu Park Mall that saw malfunctioning batons, ineffective Taser deployments, and a physical brawl on the pavement.
The suspect, Janelle Jackson, was arrested on Thursday, May 28, following her discharge from the Behavioral Health Unit at the Schneider Regional Medical Center. She was scheduled for an Advice of Rights hearing on Friday morning, May 29.
A Routine Call Escalates
According to a probable cause fact sheet authored by VIPD Officer Ja'Ida Turnbull, the incident began on the afternoon of May 22, 2026, when dispatchers sent her to the Mail Plus establishment inside Tutu Park Mall. Callers reported that Jackson was creating a localized disturbance.
Upon arriving in a marked police cruiser, Officer Turnbull observed Jackson sitting at a nearby bus stop smoking a cigarette. Though Mail Plus employees indicated they had not personally requested law enforcement intervention, Officer Turnbull made a executive decision to detain Jackson and transport her to the hospital for an evaluation, citing a pattern of escalating behavioral issues observed the previous day.
What began as compliance quickly deteriorated into a physical confrontation. When ordered to extinguish her cigarette and get into the police car, Jackson allegedly began screaming, "Get off my property," and attempted to sprint from the scene.
Equipment Failures on the Pavement
Officer Turnbull physically intercepted Jackson, grabbing her by the shirt and pinning her against the police vehicle. As Jackson aggressively pulled away, Turnbull radioed for urgent backup, realizing she could not safely cuff the suspect alone.
When Officer Tameka Beazer arrived to assist, she managed to click a single handcuff onto one of Jackson’s wrists. Jackson then allegedly twisted her body, tensed up, and struck Officer Turnbull squarely across the right side of her face. Turnbull responded by striking Jackson multiple times in the chest and upper body to force compliance.
The struggle quickly devolved into a ground fight after a failed leg-sweep maneuver brought both the officer and the suspect crashing down onto the asphalt.
As Officer Turnbull attempted to pin Jackson on the ground, Officer Beazer drew her department-issued baton, but the weapon failed to deploy properly. Beazer then transitioned to her Taser, delivering a "drive-stun" shock directly to Jackson’s leg. However, the deployment was rendered completely ineffective because the two electrical Taser probes attached too closely together on Jackson’s pants fabric. A second deployment of two additional Taser probes similarly failed to subdue the suspect.
Arrest Following Hospital Discharge
The two officers eventually managed to hoist the resisting suspect off the ground and force her face-down into the backseat of the cruiser, where her arms were finally secured in the double-locked handcuffs.
Jackson was admitted to the hospital's Behavioral Health Unit by Dr. B. Turbe. Six days later, upon her official medical discharge, she was immediately taken into custody by a contingent of VIPD officers and booked at the Richard Callwood Command.
Jackson has been formally charged with Aggravated Assault and Battery, Simple Assault and Battery, Disturbance of the Peace, and Delaying and Obstructing an Officer in the Discharge of Their Duties. Court filings note that she has a prior criminal record on file.
