Man accused of shooting at police says he was trying to scare off thieves

A Corbin man accused of shooting in the vicinity of law enforcement claims he fired his shotgun in the air to scare off would-be thieves.

Police say 31-year-old Jake Messer was under the influence of alcohol when he fired multiple shots in the vicinity of law enforcement as they approached his home on Crawford Lane off of U.S. 25Wearly Monday morning.
According to Corbin Police Officer Greg Bisschop, when officers arrived, they heard several more shots in the area, coming from a wooded area.

“At this time, Ptl. Steve Meadors advised for whomever was shooting to cease fire, and come out of the woods” Bisschop stated, noting the shots stopped for several minutes before the shooter, later identified as Messer, changed positions and fired again.
Kentucky State Police Trooper Jason McCowan and Vehicle Enforcement Officer Rob Mitchell, who had also responded to the initial call, used night vision glasses to search the woods.

“(Messer) was located shooting into the woods from a residence on Crawford Lane,” Bisschop stated, noting when officers made contact with Messer he had a strong smell of alcohol on his person.

Messer contends he only fired off two rounds from his 12-gauge shotgun that holds three rounds and that was just after 9 p.m.
According to Messer, who spoke by phone from the Whitley County Detention Center, he was lying in bed watching cartoons with his son when his Great Pyrenees dog began barking.

When the barking continued, Messer said he went out onto his porch with the shotgun and fired off the two rounds.

“Everything was quiet for about 10 minutes and she barked again,” Messer said of the dog.

Messer said he told his wife to call the police while he went back out to the porch.

“I yelled, ‘You boys better get out of here because the law is on the way,’” Messer said, adding that he told his wife and son to get in the back bedroom while he went from window to window watching for intruders.

“I saw lights coming through the woods,” Messer said, noting his doublewide trailer is about one-quarter of a mile from the road and sits on 14 acres of land.

“I was sitting by the window with the shotgun,” he said.

Messer said as the individuals stepped out of the woods, he challenged them through his son’s bedroom window.

“They said ‘sheriff’s department,’” Messer said, adding that the officers pulled him out of the window, wrestled him to the ground and put him in handcuffs.

“Never once did I hear, ‘police,’ until I hollered at them,” he said.

According to Corbin Police Major Rob Jones, the department’s public affairs officer, law enforcement at the scene included Corbin Police officers Bishop, Meadors and Glenn Taylor, along with Trooper McCowan and Vehicle Enforcement Officer Mitchell. No sheriff’s deputies were on the scene.

Messer also claims that one of the officers choked him and insisted that Messer call him, “sir.”

“They never looked for no intruders,” Messer said emphasizing that his wife was the one that called police. “They came straight up here and assaulted me and arrested me.”

“If I had not called them, it wouldn’t have happened,” he said. “They are supposed to protect and serve.”

Messer said since deer hunting season with guns had just opened, all of the gunfire that was heard might have been coming from hunters.

Messer admitted that he had been drinking earlier that evening.

Messer explained that his parents had come over to his house about 6 p.m. and while his dad was there, they had a couple of beers together.

“I wasn’t drunk at all,” Messer said.

As to the charges that Messer shot at law enforcement, Messer said there is no way he would have done that because he knows what would have happened.

“If I had shot at them, they would have killed me,” Messer said.

Messer is charged with one count of alcohol intoxication and six counts of first-degree wanton endangerment of a police officer.

No court date has been set.

Messer added that he works out of town for a heavy construction company that is currently working on the harbor tunnel in Baltimore, Md.

“I am supposed to be back to work Friday, but it isn’t looking good,” Messer said. “This is a big mess.”

Messer said he can’t post the $10,000 cash bond on which he is being held.

“It might as well be a million,” Messer said.

I would just like to see justice done,” he said.