During a racially riven time in America, a young African-American man is shot and killed by a white man. Controversy arises. Police and elected prosecutor alike determine the shooting to be self-defense, but after it becomes a cause célèbre, a special prosecutor is appointed and under his supervision, a grand jury issues an indictment for Murder. Fearing that the cost of the trial will bankrupt his family, the defendant commits suicide.
This case struck to the heart of a compassionate journalist named Joe Sexton, who spent 30 months researching his book “The Lost Sons of Omaha: Two Young Men in an American Tragedy.” He deeply interviewed the families and acquaintances of both men, and the criminal justice professionals who worked both sides of the case.
This controversial cross-racial shooting took place in May of 2020 in Omaha, Nebraska during the “George Floyd riots” that had spread around the country. Former Marine combat vet Jake Gardner, 38, owned a bar in the city, and was armed and present in hopes of preventing more vandalism than his business had already sustained. His elderly father, a heart patient, was there too. When a “protester” shoved the old man to the sidewalk outside, Jake came to his aid and was faced with a hostile crowd. Gardner drew his Springfield XD 9mm, muzzle down as a menacing crowd of protesters (rioters?) backed him down the street. A young woman who later said she wanted to “do something that matters in this world” leaped onto his back and pulled him to the ground. Gardner fired two warning shots and she fled, but then he was jumped by James Scurlock, 22, who got Gardner face down in the street, choking him from behind in a rear strangle with one arm and trying to take the gun with his other hand. Gardner was heard on surveillance video begging him to stop, to no avail, and Gardner finally fired a shot over his shoulder which proved fatal to Scurlock. The incident was recorded on multiple security cameras.
Some of the video of the actual shooting can be seen here:
Scurlock was African-American, Gardner Caucasian. The race card was instantly thrown on the table, and social media exploded. Gardner was painted as a white supremacist with a swastika tattoo and racist symbols in his bar décor, all of which were later completely disproven by Sexton’s research. When it came out that Scurlock — described by his defenders as a hero martyred while trying to prevent a racist mass murder by Gardner — had been convicted of burglary and home invasion, Scurlock’s defenders claimed he was being wrongfully smeared, but Sexton documented that Scurlock’s convictions were for real.
After the indictment, Gardner made it clear to friends that he was horrified that his legal fees would bankrupt his family. He put a Springfield 9mm to his own head and pulled the trigger.
An Even-Handed Approach
Author Sexton shows sympathy and empathy to the families of both dead men. He points out that Scurlock was loving and loyal to his family, had been severely disadvantaged growing up, but still had been vandalizing both Gardner’s business and a nearby architect’s office in the minutes before his death. Sexton graphically documents the grief both families suffered and still suffer.
Attorneys say you know the settlement of a case was fair if both sides are unhappy with it. Looking at Amazon.com, we find two “one-star reviews” of this book among the many glowing recommendations.
One bears the name Jennifer Heineman and says, “1.0 out of 5 stars Not Fair. This book claims to be diplomatic and objective but it’s not. The murder of James Scurlock happened under very specific circumstances in a very specific city marked by historical racism.
“That the author chose to ignore all that AND chose to ignore all the testimony by witnesses the night of the murder is a shame. James and Jake were not two, equally positioned men in society. That this author chose to focus on a Black man’s criminal record and his murderer’s ‘decorated’ military service is really all I need to know.”
The other is bylined Frank S. Dzik and reads, “1.0 out of 5 stars Writer overly in line with rioters. The book overall demonstrated a lack of calling a riot a riot. Burning, beating and stealing is not mostly peaceful. If not for leaning so far to the left it may have been a good book.”
I had prior knowledge of this case before reading the book, having been interviewed by the special prosecutor in an expert witness capacity. I was not called to speak to the grand jury. Some of those who were told Sexton that the special prosecutor seemed to emphasize inculpatory evidence over exculpatory. The prosecutor’s role is to be a minister of justice, as much responsible for the exoneration of the innocent as for the prosecution of the guilty. The inescapable fact is that honest experts, homicide investigators, and a responsible prosecutor saw the case as self-defense. Only after the case became driven by social media falsehoods did an indictment result.
Lessons from this doubly tragic event? While every instinct tells you to protect your business as you would your home, both men would be alive today if Gardner had stayed inside his bar during the riot.
If you are involved in a self-defense shooting that becomes a political football, make sure you have an attorney who will immediately tell your side of the story to the public before a media lynch mob can form. “We don’t discuss our cases in the press” is a rule that only works when both sides follow it.
Strongly consider belonging to a post-self-defense support group that can handle devastating legal fees, the fear of which apparently drove Jake Gardner to kill himself.
Take it from someone who had an inside glimpse of the case: “The Lost Sons of Omaha” is a most impressive piece of investigative journalism. Author Sexton’s work reminds us all of the huge importance of listening to both sides of a case and getting the whole story before we form an opinion of what happened. This excellent book also stands as a warning to all who lawfully own and carry guns: even the most righteous act of self-defense can be twisted against the defender. The fight itself generally happens in seconds, but the aftermath lasts excruciatingly longer…for those involved, and for their loved ones.
“The Lost Sons of Omaha” by Joe Sexton is available in print, Kindle, and audio from Amazon.com.
