(Santa Cruz County Sheriff Jim Hart shows an image of a Sheriff’s patrol vehicle Tuesday that sustained major damage on May 18 in Santa Cruz when a woman commandeered another patrol car and rammed into a deputy and the vehicle shown here. Photo by Tarmo Hannula/Pajaronian)
SANTA CRUZ — The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office has released the name of the female suspect involved in a deputy-related incident that occurred in the early morning of Friday on Ocean Street Extension.
Jessica M. Lowe, a Santa Cruz County resident, was arrested for attempted murder as well as numerous other charges after she escaped from the back of a patrol SUV and jumped into the driver’s seat, and ran the vehicle into a deputy.
Lowe, 27, and a male companion had been detained after two deputies discovered that one of their vehicles had been stolen in a remote section of Ocean Street Extension. As Deputy August Waltrip searched one vehicle, his partner questioned the man, who was seated in the back of a second patrol SUV.
Jessica Lowe
Lowe drove into Waltrip’s partner, forcing him into the back seat of the SUV, causing significant injuries. Waltrip tried to stop the assault, firing his service weapon. Lowe then backed up toward Waltrip, who fired his weapon several more times. As Waltrip tried to assist his injured partner, Lowe once again drove toward the deputies, Chief Deputy Craig Wilson said. Waltrip fired his weapon one last time, and Lowe finally stopped the car.
Lowe, who was shot three times, was rendered aid and then flown to a trauma center. She is expected to recover. When released she will be booked into the Santa Cruz County Jail.
The injured deputy was treated at an area hospital then released, Sheriff Jim Hart said. The man who had been detained along with Lowe is being treated as a victim, as he was in the same vehicle as the deputy during the assault.
At a press conference Tuesday afternoon, body camera footage of the incident was released to the media, showing a point of view from both officers.
“Our deputies are in a no-win situation in these types of situations,” Hart said at the conference. “This kind of incident just goes to show how quickly things can turn chaotic.”
The agency is looking into how Lowe was able to escape the vehicle so quickly, and whether modifications need to be made to the agency’s patrol cars.
“We don’t want to put on handcuffs so tight that they cut off circulation,” Wilson said. “We sometimes roll down the window for airflow. You have to balance caution with compassion — and sometimes it just doesn’t work.”
Currently, it is unknown whether drugs or alcohol were involved, or what Lowe and the man were doing at the Ocean Street Extension. Hart did mention they had dealt with Lowe in the past.
The incident is still under investigation.
In Superior Court Tuesday morning during an arraignment, though Lowe was not present because she remains in the hospital, it was stated that Lowe will remain in custody with no bail. She has been ordered to appear in court May 29.
