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Jonathan Wesley Wiseman

Age : 39

Gender : Male

Race : White

Date : 12/02/2022

Location : I-95 SB/Route 896

City : Newark

County : New Castle

State : Delaware

Agency : Delaware State Police; New Castle County Police Department; Newport Police Department; City of New Castle Police Department; Elsmere Police Department

Officer(s) :Robert Harris; Robert Batschelet; Dempsey Walters; Thomas Kashner; Raushan Rich; Rich Perillo; Ryan Stanek; Kyle Simpson; Jon Giles; James Boyda; Domenica Trace; Sean Devenney; Robert Grover; Tom Macauley; Brian Crisman; Justin Evans; Brian Ritchie; Casey Hoffman

Cause of Death : Gunshot

Event : Killed by police during chase

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

On 12/02/2022, at approximately 6:30 a.m., Jonathan Wiseman arrived at an automotive repair shop at 118 East Ayer Street in Newport in a white Acura sedan. A shop employee called 911 after seeing a handgun fall from the vehicle while employees helped jump-start it. Delaware State Police Corporal Robert Harris arrived and approached Wiseman, who continued walking away and then ran while Harris pursued him on foot.
Delaware State Police Corporals Robert Batschelet and Dempsey Walters joined the foot pursuit. Police said Wiseman held a .380-caliber handgun, stated that he intended to kill himself, fell during the pursuit and pointed the gun toward Walters. Harris, Batschelet and Walters opened fire. Walters fired three rounds, at least two of which struck a school bus carrying 36 students to Delcastle Technical High School. One bullet lodged in the driver’s armrest, another hit the roof and a third struck the frame between two windows.
Wiseman reached the Route 141 off-ramp, attempted to take several motorists’ vehicles and drove away in a Hyundai Santa Fe. Harris, Batschelet and Walters continued firing as the vehicle departed. A later ballistics examination concluded that one of Batschelet’s rounds struck Wiseman in the neck, although investigators could not establish whether the wound occurred during the original foot pursuit or on the off-ramp.
Police pursued the Hyundai for more than 20 miles through New Castle County. Wiseman traveled on Interstate 95, Route 273, Route 13, Route 40 and Route 896, struck civilian and police vehicles and crashed through construction barriers. At the Red Roof Inn near Route 896 and Interstate 95, Delaware State Police Trooper Sean Devenney drove his police vehicle into the Hyundai in an effort to disable it. Wiseman drove around the police vehicle, entered the Robscott Manor neighborhood and eventually abandoned the Hyundai at the dead end of Old Cooch’s Bridge Road.
Wiseman crossed a wooded area onto the southbound lanes of Interstate 95 near Route 896. Police said he moved against traffic while holding the handgun and attempted to take several additional vehicles. Walters fired ten rounds while Wiseman confronted a Tesla driver. One of Walters’ bullets pierced the Tesla’s windshield and lodged in the driver’s door near the motorist.
Wiseman fired through the windshield of a Subaru Outback, and that bullet lodged in the dashboard immediately in front of its driver. Newport Officer Thomas Kashner fired ten rounds and Trooper Raushan Rich fired three rounds as Wiseman moved among traffic. Wiseman then took a white Lexus NX300 and continued south on Interstate 95.
Police from five agencies opened fire as the Lexus moved along the interstate. City of New Castle Officer Rich Perillo, New Castle County Officers Ryan Stanek and Kyle Simpson, Elsmere Detective Jon Giles, Delaware State Police Troopers James Boyda, Domenica Trace, Sean Devenney, Tom Macauley, Brian Crisman and Justin Evans, and New Castle County Officer Robert Grover fired at the Lexus from different positions along the roadway. Giles fired twelve rounds, Devenney fired nine rifle rounds, Evans fired fourteen rounds and Grover fired five rounds into the rear of the Lexus.
New Castle County Corporal Jacob Gruber positioned his police vehicle in front of the slowing Lexus while other officers blocked it from behind. Delaware State Police Troopers Brian Ritchie, Tom Macauley and Casey Hoffman and New Castle County Officer Ryan Stanek fired additional handgun and rifle rounds into the stopped vehicle. Officers then formed teams behind ballistic shields. After someone announced that Wiseman appeared dead, Grover shouted that Wiseman was moving and fired another rifle round through the rear passenger window.
Officers removed Wiseman from the driver’s seat and found the handgun resting on his lap. New Castle County paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene. Ballistics testing determined that Wiseman fired at least three rounds during the encounter. The Delaware Department of Justice reported that eighteen officers fired more than 100 rounds during the multi-agency confrontation and concluded in September 2024 that criminal charges would not be filed against any of them.
Several civilian vehicles were struck by police gunfire. Gerald Etarukot was driving a blue Saab south on Interstate 95 near the Route 896 exit when a projectile shattered and a fragment struck him in the back of the head. The bullet fragment was identified as coming from a police rifle, but it was too damaged for examiners to determine which rifle or officer fired it. Multiple officers carrying rifles had fired from different positions around the interstate. Etarukot was treated at Christiana Hospital, and a fragment reportedly remained lodged in his head.
Etarukot filed a civil claim against the Delaware State Police and the Delaware Department of Safety and Homeland Security. In 2026, the state agreed to pay him $250,000. The settlement did not identify which officer shot him and did not include an admission of liability.

SOURCE LINKS :

https://www.delawareonline.com/story/news/crime/2026/08/04/delaware-man-struck-by-police-bullet-fragment-accepts-250000-settlement/91140721007/
https://attorneygeneral.delaware.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2024/09/Wiseman-OIS-final-draft-9.12.24-1.pdf
https://dsp.delaware.gov/2022/12/05/update-suspect-identified-delaware-state-police-investigate-multiagency-officer-involved-shooting/
https://6abc.com/jonathan-wiseman-i-95-police-chase-delaware-newport-response/12527911/
https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/police-name-delaware-man-who-was-shot-dead-on-i-95-after-carjackings-pursuits/3442442/