Many of us have a preconceived idea of what a criminal would look like. Sometimes, we may see criminals that look nothing like it but at other times, they may be closer than what we could’ve ever imagined.
37-year-old Jason Barnum is one of those characters that looks a lot like what most of us would expect when we think of a hardened criminal. He was found guilty of shooting a police officer in Anchorage, Alaska.
Although that was a dangerous crime and certainly one that should have landed him in jail, it wasn’t the criminal act that got the attention. It was the fact that he had a tattoo that made his right eye black.
There were other factors that also came into play in this particular case, including his picture being shown along with one of the most famous actors in America. The rumor was that Barnum was his estranged son.
The crime occurred in 2012 when Barnum fired a gun at a police officer after the police entered a hotel room. He was being investigated for some burglaries in the south of Anchorage.
When the officers left the hotel room they were shooting at Barnum and a number of other officers were also joining in quickly. Guests were evacuated from the hotel and SWAT officers were at the scene quickly.
Fortunately, the police officer did not die from his injuries but Barnum still received a sentence of 20 years. They found jewelry and valuables in a backpack in the hotel room and it seemed as if Barnum had been on a crime spree.
He was charged with one count of attempted murder and two counts of felony assault and had a bail set at $500,000. When he was asked if he understood what the charge was and if he wanted an attorney, he simply said: “Sure, why not.”
Everybody was focused on him when he entered the courtroom because of his looks. He’s covered with tattoos but it was his eye tattoo that got the most attention.
The Anchorage Police Department chief, Mark Mew spoke about the case, saying: “I think Jason Barnum decided a long time ago that his life was about being hostile to people. It seems to me that he wakes up everyday wanting to do bad things to innocent folks and wants everybody to know it.”
Barnum also had some things to say, including: “I was living on the streets, and I tried to get a job, but of course, my beautiful face didn’t allow me to do that.”
Before he was given a sentence, the police chief said: “I’m going to stick my neck out here and state the obvious. I’d like you to take a look at Mr. Barnum. He has the right to do this to himself and to express himself. We can’t sentence him for that, but I think we can consider a guy’s attitude and his behavior.”
Not much is known about Barnum at this point but he is serving his sentence. By the way, he is not Harrison Ford’s son.
