Man who shot Anchorage police officer identified and charged with assault, not attempted murder

A man who is accused of shooting an Anchorage police officer and two other citizens has been identified as 23-year-old Jalen J. Baker. He is now lodged with “three hots and a cot” at the Anchorage Correctional Complex on charges of three counts of Assault 1, one count of Assault 3, Misconduct Involving a Weapon 2, Misconduct Involving a Weapon 3, and Reckless Endangerment. The motive regarding the shooting remains unclear, police said.

Why he was not charged with attempted murder after shooting at and hitting a police officer with a bullet is also unclear.

The incident unfolded near Creekside Park on Monday, when Baker allegedly approached a car and shot two people inside of it. Then he hunkered down into a nearby trailer home and barricaded himself in. From there, he shot a police officer, who ended up in the hospital with a bullet wound, along with the other two people the man had shot earlier.

Police used nonlethal projectiles to try to bring the matter to a safe conclusion. Six people have been shot by Anchorage police during the past three months, but Baker was not the seventh.

According to sources, Baker had others at gunpoint but the gun jammed on him before he could get shots off. For as young as he is, Baker has a long rap sheet of prior felony charges against him involving assaults and threats.

As of Wednesday, Mayor Suzanne LaFrance has made no public statement about the officer who was shot.

Baker’s court arraignment continues on Wednesday.