Death by Cop 2026
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Stephen Thomas Ball
Age : 33
Gender : Male
Race : Unknown
Date : 01/28/2026
Location : Home Depot parking area
City : Williamsburg
County : York
State : Virginia
Agency : James City County Police Department
Officer(s) :Not Disclosed
Cause of Death : Gunshot
Event : Killed by police during domestic violence call
OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :
On 01/28/2026, James City County police officers responded after a man stabbed a woman outside a Ross Dress for Less store in Williamsburg. The man then moved to the nearby Home Depot parking area armed with a claw hammer. Officers approached the man and repeatedly issued commands to drop the hammer. Instead of dropping the hammer, the man raised it and ran toward the officers. Officers discharged their duty weapons, striking the man. He was transported to a hospital, where he died. The man was identified by the York-Poquoson Sheriff’s Office as 33-year-old Stephen Thomas Ball of Newport, North Carolina. Investigators are reviewing the incident.