Suspect in Collegedale shots-fired incident still not in custody nearly two months later

James thumbnail
James thumbnail
photo David Leray James

A man accused of throwing a woman across a Collegedale, Tennessee, parking lot and then firing nine shots at her vehicle and apartment is still not in custody, nearly two months after the incident.

Collegedale police were called to the 10400 block of Race Lane on June 18 on a shots-fired call. It was the growing city's first shooting incident in at least two years, records show.

No one was injured in the shooting, but police spoke to a woman who said David Leray James, 26, physically assaulted her, according to an incident report.

She told police she had asked James to come to her house to help her install a lock on her front door. At some point, though, James began an argument and snatched her cell phone and keys away before running outside into the driveway, the report states.

The woman followed James outside and noticed his car's door was open, the report reads. She told police she knew he carried a handgun in the car, so she got inside and "retrieved the handgun in an attempt to protect herself," the report states.

But James grabbed her arm, twisted it and took the gun from her, the report states. He then "threw her across the parking lot where she landed on the ground."

Then he got into his car and started to back out but stopped. He got out, walked to the front of the vehicle and fired nine shots toward the woman's 2019 silver Honda Civic and apartment.

Seven of the bullets went into the woman's trunk, some of which went through the car's back seat. One bullet went through a child's car seat, and another went through a neighbor's garage door and into the building's wallboard.

Police found that James owned a silver 2012 Volkswagen Jetta and contacted Hamilton County dispatchers to issue a "BOLO," or "be on the look out," for the vehicle to the sheriff's office and Chattanooga police.

Officers filed aggravated domestic assault and reckless endangerment charges against James, both of which are felonies, but he had not been arrested as of Tuesday.

The next day, on June 19, Chattanooga police issued a warrant for James' arrest after police were called to the 600 block of Cherry Street in response to a harassment complaint.

A harassment charge is a misdemeanor unless the suspect is a convicted criminal and commits the offense while incarcerated, on probation or parole. The Chattanooga Police Department's fugitive division does not typically search for suspects with misdemeanor charges.

No other active warrants for James are listed on Hamilton County's open warrants list.

Collegedale police Chief Brian Hickman said that when a warrant is issued by Collegedale court officers "attempt to serve the warrants as we can."

"As leads develop we will follow the leads until we are unable to continue," he said.

Hickman also said he was unaware that James had any additional warrants.

"Shortly after the court issued warrants on Mr. James, he eluded police and was unable to be captured," Hickman said. "His whereabouts are currently unknown."

James' last known address, according to the open warrants list, is in Clarksville, Tennessee. But it's not clear if Collegedale police contacted the U.S. Marshals Service - the federal agency that regularly helps local jurisdictions in apprehending fugitives - for help locating James, because Hickman did not respond to a request to clarify.

Local police departments are required to request U.S. Marshals Service assistance before marshals can step in, unless it's a federal charge or probation violation.

Lt. Jeff Young, who is in charge of the department's special operations unit, did not return multiple requests for comment on the reason for which James has not been placed on any "most wanted" lists or if the department's special operations team has asked for assistance from outside agencies.

The Collegedale Police Department, a 24-officer force, does not have a dedicated fugitive division, but its two-officer special operations team is in charge of attempting to locate and apprehend suspects who have active warrants. They are also in charge of all criminal investigations, including undercover narcotics investigations, according to the department's website, for the city's 11,600 residents.

Contact Rosana Hughes at rhughes@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6327 with tips or story ideas. Follow her on Twitter@HughesRosana.

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