A Highland Park inmate is now facing a significant number of charges after the last Thursday incident that involved an assault on a law enforcement officer and a brief, albeit unsuccessful, escape attempt. David Johnathan Soward, 29, is charged with multiple felonies, including escape from jail through violence and disarming a police officer.
The situation escalated when Soward, who was being transported from his cell within the Highland Park police facility off Woodward Avenue, managed to take a Taser from an officer forcibly. Initially failing to subdue the officer with the Taser, he then allegedly refused to comply with officers who commanded him to surrender quickly. According to ClickOnDetroit, he pointed the weapon toward another inmate before ultimately being subdued and tased by the officers responding to the commotion.
Highland Park Police Chief James McMahon characterized the incident, stating, "A prisoner overpowered one of our jailers," and went on to describe how Soward "attempted to escape" and "assaulted our jailer." The nature of the altercation and the immediacy with which the jail staff contained the situation were emphasized by McMahon's statement that Soward was "contained within the jail, with no way out," as reported by ClickOnDetroit.
Following the incident, Soward’s legal repercussions include charges of resisting and obstructing police, causing injury, possession of a Taser, two counts of felonious assault, and two counts of resisting and obstructing a police officer. He was arraigned with a $50,000 cash/surety bond set and is scheduled to appear in court again for a probable cause conference on December 23, as reported by Audacy—details regarding why Soward was initially in custody before officials did not disclose the incident.
