A St. Louis area man was found guilty of opening fire on Normandy police officers in a shootout on Adelaide Avenue. Joshua Bolden, now 38, was convicted on two counts of first-degree assault of a special victim and two counts of armed criminal action.
The verdict closes out a case that dates back to April 9, 2020, when Normandy Police Department officers spotted a 2012 Kia they believed was tied to an earlier shots-fired incident in Maryland Heights, according to KSDK. Officers attempted to pull the driver over, and the Kia eventually stopped in the 1400 block of Adelaide Avenue in St. Louis.
Separately, St. Louis police received a call for an officer in need of aid around 11:15 a.m. that day near Interstate 70 and Adelaide Avenue, per the station's report. As reported by fox2now.com, the shootout itself took place on Adelaide Avenue.
Gunfire Erupts After the Kia Stops
Once the car stopped, Bolden — then identified as 31 years old — got out of the passenger side armed with a rifle and opened fire, according to fox2now.com. He fired shots into the officers' patrol cars, and the two officers inside exited, took cover, and returned fire, the outlet reported at the time.
One of the officers suffered minor facial injuries from broken glass caused by the gunfire, was treated at the scene, and released, per the same account. Bolden ran and hid near a house afterward but was captured by police a short time later, fox2now.com reported.
The driver of the Kia, a 29-year-old woman, stayed in the vehicle and was taken into custody, according to the outlet's original reporting. Police recovered a rifle, a handgun, and suspected narcotics from the car, the report noted.
Charges Then and Convictions Now
At the time of the 2020 incident, prosecutors charged Bolden with two counts of first-degree assault on a law enforcement officer and two counts of armed criminal action, per fox2now.com's reporting. More than five years later, a jury has now convicted him on two counts of first-degree assault of a special victim and two counts of armed criminal action, according to KSDK.
Jurors recommended a sentence of 27 to 54 years in prison, and Bolden is scheduled to be formally sentenced on November 6, KSDK reported.
Prosecutor Points to Broader Danger
In a statement tied to the case, Prosecutor Gabe Gore said using deadly force against law enforcement officers “places not only their lives at risk, but also the lives of everyone in the surrounding community.” Gore added that “an attack on police officers undermines the very foundation of public safety and will always be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
