Lady Gaga Dog Walker Shooting Suspect Mistakenly Released From Jail
A suspect in the murder of Lady Gaga's dogwalker and the theft of two of her French bulldogs was mistakenly released from jail this week. James Howard Jackson, 19, was mistakenly released from custody Wednesday due to a "clerical error," the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department confirmed on Friday. Jackson was charged with attempted murder after allegedly shooting Lady Gaga's dog walker.
In a statement Friday, the L.A. County District Attorney's Office said the error occurred because the initial charges filed against Jackson were dropped so a "superseding indictment" could replace them. Jackson was arraigned at the Clara Shortridge Criminal Justice Center on the new indictment on Tuesday.
"Mr. Jackson was arraigned on a superseding indictment filed in court under a new case number," the DA's office wrote. "The old case was then dismissed by a judge as required by law." According to the sheriff's department, he remains at large as of Friday, and authorities continue to look for him.
Ryan Fischer was walking three of Lady Gaga's dogs in February 2021 when two men jumped out of a car and tried to steal them. One of the men had a semiautomatic handgun and shot Fischer in the chest. Fischer spent over a month in the hospital. One of his lungs was severely damaged, and part of it needed to be removed. Authorities believe Jackson fired the shot that injured Fischer.
According to People, Jackson, Lafayette Whaley, and Jaylin White were charged with conspiracy robbery, attempted murder, and second-degree robbery. Additionally, Jennifer McBride and Harold White, Jaylin's father, were "determined to be accessories after the initial crime" and charged.
The suspects took Gaga's French bulldogs Koji and Gustav, while Asia escaped and was found by police. While she was filming House of Gucci in Europe, Gaga offered a $500,000 reward for the return of Koji and Gustav. Two days after the attack, McBride returned the dogs to authorities.
Fischer spoke with CBS Mornings host Gayle King in September 2021 about the attack and praised Gaga for her support. "She's helped me so much," he said. "She's been a friend for me and after I was attacked, my family was flown out and I had trauma therapists flown to me and I stayed at her house for months while friends comforted me and security was around me."