According to the Associated Press, James Howard Jackson, 19, was mistakenly freed on April 6 from a Los Angeles county jail where he was being held for his alleged involvement in the shooting of Lady Gaga’s dog walker and stealing her French bulldogs. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department confirmed on Wednesday that Jackson was recaptured.
The LACSD said Jackson was released accidentally because of a clerical error.
LACSD, Major Crimes Bureau, and the United States Marshal Service - Pacific Southwest Regional Fugitive Task Force spent months searching for Jackson. In July, the U.S. Marshals offered a reward up to $5,000 for information leading to Jackson’s arrest, according to the AP.
Investigators, together with the Special Enforcement Bureau, were able to execute a search warrant at a home in Palmdale, California. Jackson was taken into custody without incident, LACSD said.
According to the AP, Jackson was one of five people arrested in connection with the attack on Lady Gaga’s dog walker and the stealing of her French bulldogs, which happened on February 24, 2021. One of three men charged in the case pleaded no contest to second-degree robbery. Jaylin Keyshawn White, 20, was sentenced to four years in a California state prison.
The AP said prosecutors claimed that Jackson and two other alleged gang members were driving around to look for expensive French bulldogs to dognap and spotted Lady Gaga’s dog walker, Ryan Fischer, near Sunset Boulevard. Fischer was “hit, choked and then shot” in the attack. According to the AP, the attack was caught on a doorbell camera nearby.
Fischer lost part of his lung as a result of the attack but has been recovering. Lady Gaga’s dogs were returned two days later by a woman who said she found the dogs tied up to a pole and had asked about the reward. According to the AP, she was charged with receiving stolen property.
Jackson was already charged and pleaded not guilty. He was charged with attempted murder, conspiracy to commit a robbery and assault with a semiautomatic firearm, according to the AP.
Photos: Lady Gaga through the years Check out these memorable photos of pop superstar Lady Gaga through the years. (Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue)
Photos: Lady Gaga through the years 2008: Lady Gaga poses backstage during MTV's Total Request Live at the MTV Times Square Studios on August 12, 2008, in New York City. (Scott Gries/Getty Images)
Photos: Lady Gaga through the years 2009: Queen Elizabeth II meets singer Lady Gaga following the Royal Variety Performance on December 7, 2009, in Blackpool, England. (Leon Neal/ WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Photos: Lady Gaga through the years 2010: Singer Lady Gaga poses in the press room during the MTV Video Music Awards at NOKIA Theatre L.A. LIVE on September 12, 2010, in Los Angeles. (Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
Photos: Lady Gaga through the years 2011: Singer Lady Gaga performs onstage during the MTV Europe Music Awards 2011 live show at at the Odyssey Arena on November 6, 2011, in Belfast, Northern Ireland. (Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images)
Photos: Lady Gaga through the years 2012: Lady Gaga performs on the catwalk by Philip Treacy on Day 3 of London Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2013, at the Royal Courts of Justice on September 16, 2012, in London. (Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images)
Photos: Lady Gaga through the years 2013: Singer Lady Gaga attends the 2013 American Music Awards at Nokia Theatre L.A. Live on November 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (Jason Merritt/Getty Images)
Photos: Lady Gaga through the years 2014: Designer Donatella Versace (left) and Musician Lady Gaga attends the 2014 Vanity Fair Oscar Party hosted by Graydon Carter on March 2, 2014, in West Hollywood, California. (Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)
Photos: Lady Gaga through the years 2015: Recording Artists Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga perform onstage during The 57th annual Grammy Awards at the Staples Center on February 8, 2015, in Los Angeles. (Larry Busacca/Getty Images for NARAS)
Photos: Lady Gaga through the years 2015: Recording artist Lady Gaga attends the 87th annual Academy Awards at Hollywood & Highland Center on February 22, 2015, in Hollywood, California. (Jason Merritt/Getty Images)
Photos: Lady Gaga through the years 2016: Recording artist Lady Gaga attends the 88th annual Academy Awards at Hollywood & Highland Center on February 28, 2016, in Hollywood, California. (Jason Merritt/Getty Images)
Photos: Lady Gaga through the years 2017: Musician Lady Gaga performs onstage during the Pepsi Zero Sugar Super Bowl LI Halftime Show at NRG Stadium on February 5, 2017, in Houston. (Christopher Polk/Getty Images)
Photos: Lady Gaga through the years 2018: Lady Gaga walks the red carpet ahead of the "A Star Is Born" screening during the 75th Venice Film Festival at Sala Grande on August 31, 2018, in Venice, Italy. (Vittorio Zunino Celotto/Getty Images)
Photos: Lady Gaga through the years 2019: Lady Gaga, winner of Best Original Song for "Shallow" from "A Star is Born," poses in the press room during the 91st annual Academy Awards at Hollywood and Highland on February 24, 2019, in Hollywood, California. (Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
Photos: Lady Gaga through the years 2019: Lady Gaga attends the 2019 Met Gala Celebrating Camp: Notes on Fashion at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 6, 2019, in New York City. (Neilson Barnard/Getty Images)
Photos: Lady Gaga through the years 2020: Lady Gaga attends AT&T TV Super Saturday Night at Meridian at Island Gardens on February 1, 2020, in Miami. (Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for AT&T)
Photos: Lady Gaga through the years 2021: Lady Gaga sings the National Anthem at the inauguration of U.S. President-elect Joe Biden on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol on January 20, 2021, in Washington, D.C. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Photos: Lady Gaga through the years 2021: Lady Gaga attends the UK premiere of "House of Gucci" at Odeon Luxe Leicester Square on November 9, 2021, in London. (Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios and Universal Pictures)
Photos: Lady Gaga through the years 2022: Lady Gaga attends the 64th annual Grammy Awards at MGM Grand Garden Arena on April 3, 2022, in Las Vegas. (Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for the Recording Academy)