Man charged after gas station dispute; battery of officers

CALEDONIA, Wis. - A Waukegan man has been charged following a gas station dispute over lottery fees led to a struggle with responding officers on July 13.

Jermaine Usher, 43, has been charged with the following: 

• Two counts of Battery to a Law Enforcement Officer
• Two counts of Disorderly Conduct
• Four counts of Misdeamenor Bail Jumping

According to a criminal complaint, Usher was at a Caledonia gas station around 1:15 p.m. Tuesday and won $800 from a video game lottery machine. The gas station owner told him there was a $40 tax on the winnings and Usher became "unhappy."

A call came in shortly after for a report of a man with a gun. Dispatch told officers that the store owner had brandished a firearm toward Usher during the argument.

Upon arrival, officers met with Usher who was near the exit of the gas station, and he was inevitably emotional and unhappy with the situation. The officer informed him to stay near the exit, to which he complied, a complaint said.

The officer then saw the owner exit the store and knew through dispatch that he was probably armed. Officers began to give him commands to face away and put his hands in the air. Initially, the store owner did not comply; however, three officers were able to subdue him, handcuff him behind his back and gain control. A black 9mm Smith and Wesson handgun was located in the store owner's right waistband, according to the complaint.

When questioned by police, the store owner said many times that Usher was creating a disturbance, and he did not feel safe with him in the store. He said he never pointed the gun at Usher but did show him that he had a gun. He stated that due to Usher becoming enraged, he showed him the weapon and asked him to leave the store, and told Usher he would bring the money out to his vehicle, which he did, according to the complaint.

While that interview was happening, two officers were speaking with Usher. During the process of that interview, he became combative and resisted a search for weapons. Due to becoming combative, and the possibility of having a weapon, he was handcuffed. During the search, Usher allegedly would not follow commands and had to be decentralized by the officers, a complaint said. 

As officers were directing Usher to the ground, both officers were hurt and suffered soft tissue damage. Officer Vannucci suffered scrapes and extensive bruising on his arm; Officer Christensen suffered possible ligament damage to his thumb.

Usher was out on bond in Wisconsin under the condition that he wouldn't commit further law violations after he was released on October 1, 2019, court documents say.

Usher is due back in court on July 29 for his preliminary hearing. 

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