Police Officer Arrested on Two Murder Charges
Pentagon Police Officer Kills Two Men
(MD) – David Hall Dixon, who is a police officer with the Pentagon Force Protection Agency, saw three men who he believed were trying to steal cars. Dixon confronted the men and, according to him, they drove at him with their vehicle, attempting to hit him.
The Tacoma Police Department processed the scene and collected all available security videos. They quickly discovered that the shots Dixon fired entered through the back of the vehicle and hit the men in their backs, casting doubt on Dixon’s version of events. The men went to a hospital where two of them died.
Additional Charges of Attempted Murder and Reckless Endangerment
Dixon was charged with two counts of 2nd-degree murder for the two men he killed. He was also charged with attempted murder for the man who survived. The charge of reckless endangerment was added due to the use of a firearm.
Tacoma police discovered that Dixon had been involved in other altercations. According to NBC Washington, “Authorities said they obtained video evidence of an incident in May 2020, when Dixon pointed a shotgun at a homeless woman in his condo building’s lobby and pepper-sprayed her.” The video shows Dixon pepper spraying the woman and “pointing a shotgun in the female’s face.”
Per ABC News,
“Officers found the woman and confirmed that she’d been pepper-sprayed. They said she also appeared to be in a “mental crisis” and soon was transported for emergency evaluation.”
Dixon told the investigating officers about pepper spraying the woman, but never mentioned his use of a gun. After viewing the video, Tacoma police are contemplating filing assault charges against Dixon for his actions during that incident. There was an additional incident where Dixon confronted a man who supposedly “approached him with a hatchet and threatened him in July 2020. No one was hurt or charged in that incident.”
Police Chief Addresses Arrest of Police Officer
Tacoma Police Chief, Antonio DeVaul, made it clear that Officer Dixon was not in his jurisdiction, was not acting as an officer, and stated that he “doesn’t believe he had any law enforcement powers in the State of Maryland,” (see video 6 min mark). Not all federal law enforcement agencies are automatically considered peace officers. For example, Border Patrol officers are NOT peace officers in the State of Texas. This means that Dixon was acting as a civilian and, according to Chief DeVaul, “Mr. Dixon had no lawful or justifiable reason to shoot.”
A commissioner was not able to set a bail bond amount for David Hall Dixon. A judge will hear decide at a Monday hearing. Mr. Dixon currently remains in jail. The Pentagon police have placed Dixon on administrative leave.