A Chico police officer was seriously injured Tuesday evening while arresting a homeless man reportedly swinging around a hammer and threatening customers inside a store.

Chico Police said they received a call from a store on the 2500 block of Notre Dame Boulevard at around 6:15 p.m. Tuesday night. In the call, a store employee told officers a homeless-looking man was walking through the store and pushing shopping carts at customers; acting as if he was going to hit them.

Officers responded to the store and a store employee told officers the suspect, later identified as 36-year-old James Cleveland Owens, was walking through the store swinging a hammer in the air; still acting as if he was going to hit customers.

Police said their officers found Owens inside the store and attempted to deescalate the situation. However, Owens ran away from officers and through the store.

The CPD said one of their officers caught up with Owens and attempted to detain him but Owens punched the officer—breaking a bone in the officer's face.

However, police said the officer was still able to take Owens to the ground as other officers assisted in arresting him.

Ultimately, Owens was booked into the Butte County Jail on several charges including battery against a police officer, obstructing or resisting an executive officer, and obstructing or resisting a peace officer. His bail is currently set at $43,000, according to the jail. The CPD said Owens was also arrested for two other crimes in the last month: disorderly conduct and a felony warrant from an outside agency.

Additionally, Chico police said the officer involved was seriously injured but is expected to make a full recovery.

--

To report errors or issues with this article please email the editorial team.