Sgt. Joshua Caudell
Officer: Arkansas Department of Corrections, Sergeant Joshua Caudell
Date: 2/28/2022 Location: Maumelle, AR FACTORS (1,2,4,7,15,19,21)
Perpetrator(s) Involved: Demark Lee Jordan
Criminal Activity History/Involved: Yes, Jordan has prior arrests for terrorist act – conveyance, aggravated assault, felony possession of a firearm, and 3rd degree domestic assault . / Yes, Jordan shot at officers responding to a 911 call for a welfare check at his home.
Mental Illness: Yes, Jordan’s friend noted he was seeing a mental health counselor and he was concerned about Jackson’s behavior in recent weeks.
Substance Abuse History/Involved: Unknown. / None stated.
Race/Sex/Age: Black/Male/37
What prompted the initial contact with the killer? At approximately 8 p.m. on February 27, 2022, Pulaski County Deputy Sheriff’s responded to a 911 call to check the welfare of a woman at her home. Upon arrival those officers heard gunshots they believed were aimed towards them. When it was discovered the shooter, later identified as the missing woman’s husband, Demark Jordan, fled the scene, K-9 officers were called in to assist with finding him. Around 4 a.m. on February 28th, Sgt. Joshua Caudell and other K9 handlers tracked Jordan to a trailer a few blocks away from the initial location.
Actions taken by subject toward police: When Sgt. Caudell and other deputies looked under the trailer, Jordan shot at them, fatally striking the sergeant before fleeing the scene again.
Reactions by the police: When the officers realized Jordan was no longer hiding under the trailer, an intensive multi-agency search was conducted and he was tracked down and taken into custody without further incident the next day.
How murdered? Sgt. Caudell was fatally shot while looking for a suspect who shot at the deputies that responded to his house for a 911 call.
What could have been done differently for the officer to still be alive? One of the many dangers of searching for a suspect is every turn of the corner, opening of a door, or looking behind an object could expose the officers to being attacked or shot just as happened here.
Would the officer have been justified to use deadly force before being murdered? No, Sgt. Caudell was ambushed and never had a chance to defend himself.
Outcome for the cop-killer: Jordan was arrested and faces charges of “capital murder and two counts of criminal attempt to commit capital murder.”
Miscellaneous: Jordan pled guilty in January 2019 and was given 5 years supervised probation through January 2024 for a felony criminal possession of a firearm offense that occurred in November 2017. Had Jordan been imprisoned as he should have been, Sgt. Caudell would still be alive.
