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Woman Released From Jail After Firing at St. Louis Police Now Charged

Jada Davis, 54, is facing two felonies after an exchange of gunfire outside the Social Security Building

Jan 18, 2023 at 7:58 am

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click to enlarge

KSDK

Screen grab of cell phone video from the incident, via KSDK.

A 54-year-old woman who allegedly exchanged gunfire with police Friday but was released from jail the following day without charges, has now been charged with two felonies.

Yesterday evening, KSDK reported that St. Louis prosecutors had charged Jada Davis with armed criminal action and unlawful use of a weapon.

A photo posted to the St. Louis Subreddit last night purports to show police placing Davis under arrest, but as of this morning, she was not listed as being at the City Justice Center.

Woman Who Shot at St. Louis Police Released Without Charges: Apparently aligned with the Sovereign Citizen movement, the 54-year-old had threatened to shoot up a federal building

Davis had been parked outside the Social Security Building in the Downtown West neighborhood on Friday morning when, according to the police probable cause statement, a Federal Protective Services officer told Davis she needed to move her van. Davis threatened to shoot the officer.

The Social Security Building is on 16th Street, one block from the City Museum and holds many federal workers.

The SLMPD were called to the scene, and a police sergeant told Davis she needed to park her van elsewhere. Davis then threatened to shoot the sergeant.

In an attempt to get Davis out of the vehicle, the sergeant broke one of its widows, at which point Davis allegedly opened fire.

No one was injured in the exchange of gunfire, and Davis was placed under arrest.

After an arrest, police have 24 hours to apply for charges or else the person who has been arrested can be released from custody. Police said that they did apply for charges in that timeframe, but the Office of the Circuit Attorney said that more police work was needed.

A statement from the CAO said in part, “Investigations take time, and in all cases we must wait until the facts are submitted and reviewed. In this case, the Circuit Attorney's Office is dedicated to ensuring that the office carries out its duty to prosecute criminal cases in a manner that seeks justice rather than just convictions on behalf of the residents of the City of St. Louis.”

KSDK’s Christine Byers interviewed Davis after her release from jail but prior to charges being filed.

"I did not shoot at the police, I shot out of my vehicle, which is what I promise to do," Davis told Byers. Her van has writing on it, and one of the statements is that if someone breaks a window, she'll shoot. "If anyone busts a window on my mobile home, I got a right to defend myself."

Davis also said that she considers herself a member of the Moorish Temple — a group that believes African Americans are descendants of Moabites and are Moorish by nationality — not a sovereign citizen. She added that she believes she doesn’t have to follow United States law because she has no contract with its government.

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