Topline: Mississippi’s attorney general has ruled out another manslaughter trial for Michael Rhinewalt after a jury deadlocked in the fatal shooting of 25-year-old Jaylen Lewis.
Published: October 1, 2026 4:04 pm ET
Randy Shaw
I cut my teeth in journalism when I began looking into what I saw as abuses of power in my local government. From then on, I was hooked on the dopamine rush of uncovering information.
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Michael Rhinewalt
JACKSON, MS — Mississippi will not retry former Capitol Police officer Michael Rhinewalt on a manslaughter charge in the fatal shooting of Jaylen Lewis, a 25-year-old Black motorist, after jurors failed to reach a verdict.
The September 28 jury also acquitted former Capitol Police officer Steven Frederick of manslaughter in the September 2022 shooting, according to The Associated Press, reporting through News4JAX. Attorney General Lynn Fitch’s office, which prosecuted both men, subsequently announced it would not pursue another trial against Rhinewalt.
Attorney General Explains Decision
Fitch’s office said it had followed the process and framed its decision in terms of deference to police.
“In the case of a tie, the benefit of the doubt goes to our law enforcement officers,” the office said, adding that officers had earned that treatment.
The shooting has raised questions about policing in Jackson, a majority-Black city, and prompted a lawsuit by Lewis’s mother, Arkela Lewis. Rhinewalt and Frederick are white and were serving as Capitol Police officers when they shot Lewis.
Competing Accounts of the Encounter
Both former officers testified that they fired in self-defense after Lewis rammed a police vehicle and drove toward them.
Prosecutors offered a different account of what Lewis and his passenger understood about the encounter: They did not know police were trying to stop them. The officers were traveling in unmarked vehicles and wearing plain clothes with vests.
Frederick’s attorney, Merrida Coxwell, told the AP on September 29 that both men feared for their lives and each other’s safety. He described the shooting as tragic but maintained that Lewis should have stopped.
Separate Shooting Charge Remains
Rhinewalt also faces an aggravated assault charge arising from a different police shooting in 2022. Sherita Harris says Rhinewalt shot her in the head during a pursuit after a traffic stop.
Rhinewalt and another Capitol Police officer charged in that case say Harris fled after they got out of their patrol vehicle and that they heard gunshots coming from the car during the chase. Both have pleaded not guilty.
Rhinewalt’s attorneys did not immediately respond to the AP’s calls and emails. The decision against another manslaughter trial concerns Lewis’s death; the separate aggravated assault charge remains unresolved.
Presumption of Innocence: A presumption of innocence means that any defendant in a criminal trial is presumed to be innocent until they have been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The defendant in this case is only accused of the charges set forth in the criminal complaint. They are innocent until proven guilty.
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Mississippi Won’t Retry Former Officer in Jaylen Lewis’s Fatal Shooting
Mississippi’s attorney general has ruled out another manslaughter trial for Michael Rhinewalt after a jury deadlocked in the fatal shooting of 25-year-old Jaylen Lewis.
By Randy Shaw
Published: October 1, 2026 4:04 pm ET
Michael Rhinewalt
JACKSON, MS — Mississippi will not retry former Capitol Police officer Michael Rhinewalt on a manslaughter charge in the fatal shooting of Jaylen Lewis, a 25-year-old Black motorist, after jurors failed to reach a verdict.
The September 28 jury also acquitted former Capitol Police officer Steven Frederick of manslaughter in the September 2022 shooting, according to The Associated Press, reporting through News4JAX. Attorney General Lynn Fitch’s office, which prosecuted both men, subsequently announced it would not pursue another trial against Rhinewalt.
Attorney General Explains Decision
Fitch’s office said it had followed the process and framed its decision in terms of deference to police.
“In the case of a tie, the benefit of the doubt goes to our law enforcement officers,” the office said, adding that officers had earned that treatment.
The shooting has raised questions about policing in Jackson, a majority-Black city, and prompted a lawsuit by Lewis’s mother, Arkela Lewis. Rhinewalt and Frederick are white and were serving as Capitol Police officers when they shot Lewis.
Competing Accounts of the Encounter
Both former officers testified that they fired in self-defense after Lewis rammed a police vehicle and drove toward them.
Prosecutors offered a different account of what Lewis and his passenger understood about the encounter: They did not know police were trying to stop them. The officers were traveling in unmarked vehicles and wearing plain clothes with vests.
Frederick’s attorney, Merrida Coxwell, told the AP on September 29 that both men feared for their lives and each other’s safety. He described the shooting as tragic but maintained that Lewis should have stopped.
Separate Shooting Charge Remains
Rhinewalt also faces an aggravated assault charge arising from a different police shooting in 2022. Sherita Harris says Rhinewalt shot her in the head during a pursuit after a traffic stop.
Rhinewalt and another Capitol Police officer charged in that case say Harris fled after they got out of their patrol vehicle and that they heard gunshots coming from the car during the chase. Both have pleaded not guilty.
Rhinewalt’s attorneys did not immediately respond to the AP’s calls and emails. The decision against another manslaughter trial concerns Lewis’s death; the separate aggravated assault charge remains unresolved.
Presumption of Innocence: A presumption of innocence means that any defendant in a criminal trial is presumed to be innocent until they have been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The defendant in this case is only accused of the charges set forth in the criminal complaint. They are innocent until proven guilty.
Editor's Note: ThePo makes every effort to accurately transcribe the contents of affidavits of probable cause contained in criminal complaints. Often, the complaints themselves are copies of copies of faxed copies, and are difficult to read. To confirm the accuracy of our transcription, contact the Magisterial District Court listed above and request a copy of the criminal complaint. It's a public record to which you are entitled.
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Latest Articles
Mississippi Won’t Retry Former Officer in Jaylen Lewis’s Fatal Shooting
Mississippi’s attorney general has ruled out another manslaughter trial for Michael Rhinewalt after a jury deadlocked in the fatal shooting of 25-year-old Jaylen Lewis.
By Randy Shaw
Published: October 1, 2026 4:04 pm ET
Michael Rhinewalt
JACKSON, MS — Mississippi will not retry former Capitol Police officer Michael Rhinewalt on a manslaughter charge in the fatal shooting of Jaylen Lewis, a 25-year-old Black motorist, after jurors failed to reach a verdict.
The September 28 jury also acquitted former Capitol Police officer Steven Frederick of manslaughter in the September 2022 shooting, according to The Associated Press, reporting through News4JAX. Attorney General Lynn Fitch’s office, which prosecuted both men, subsequently announced it would not pursue another trial against Rhinewalt.
Attorney General Explains Decision
Fitch’s office said it had followed the process and framed its decision in terms of deference to police.
“In the case of a tie, the benefit of the doubt goes to our law enforcement officers,” the office said, adding that officers had earned that treatment.
The shooting has raised questions about policing in Jackson, a majority-Black city, and prompted a lawsuit by Lewis’s mother, Arkela Lewis. Rhinewalt and Frederick are white and were serving as Capitol Police officers when they shot Lewis.
Competing Accounts of the Encounter
Both former officers testified that they fired in self-defense after Lewis rammed a police vehicle and drove toward them.
Prosecutors offered a different account of what Lewis and his passenger understood about the encounter: They did not know police were trying to stop them. The officers were traveling in unmarked vehicles and wearing plain clothes with vests.
Frederick’s attorney, Merrida Coxwell, told the AP on September 29 that both men feared for their lives and each other’s safety. He described the shooting as tragic but maintained that Lewis should have stopped.
Separate Shooting Charge Remains
Rhinewalt also faces an aggravated assault charge arising from a different police shooting in 2022. Sherita Harris says Rhinewalt shot her in the head during a pursuit after a traffic stop.
Rhinewalt and another Capitol Police officer charged in that case say Harris fled after they got out of their patrol vehicle and that they heard gunshots coming from the car during the chase. Both have pleaded not guilty.
Rhinewalt’s attorneys did not immediately respond to the AP’s calls and emails. The decision against another manslaughter trial concerns Lewis’s death; the separate aggravated assault charge remains unresolved.
Presumption of Innocence: A presumption of innocence means that any defendant in a criminal trial is presumed to be innocent until they have been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The defendant in this case is only accused of the charges set forth in the criminal complaint. They are innocent until proven guilty.
Editor's Note: ThePo makes every effort to accurately transcribe the contents of affidavits of probable cause contained in criminal complaints. Often, the complaints themselves are copies of copies of faxed copies, and are difficult to read. To confirm the accuracy of our transcription, contact the Magisterial District Court listed above and request a copy of the criminal complaint. It's a public record to which you are entitled.
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