CLEVELAND — Editor's Note: The above video aired on January 26, 2021
One of the great-grandsons of Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson has been charged for his role in the attempted break-in at a Valley View gun store last June.
According to court records, the 14-year-old was charged with breaking and entering, vandalism, and possessing criminal tools. All of the charges are fifth-degree felonies.
The attempted break-in happened at the Cleveland Armory on June 3, 2020. Jackson's great-grandson was one of two people who were involved in the incident.
The mother of Jackson’s great-grandson lives on E. 39th Street, the complaint notes. Mayor Jackson lives on E. 38th Street. That's also where his grandson, 22-year-old Frank Q. Jackson, lives. Another of Mayor Jackson's great-grandsons was arrested and charged with several crimes involving gang activity in 2019.
In February, Frank Q. Jackson was indicted in connection with a high-speed chase involving Parma police. He was charged with felonious assault and failure to comply, both felonies. The 24-year-old is accused of "knowingly caus[ing] or attempt[ing] to cause physical harm to [Officer] Matthew Midlin by means of a deadly weapon or dangerous ordnance."
During the early morning hours of Jan. 24, authorities pulled Jackson over on State Road for having tinted windows and spoke with him, asking him to step out of his 2008 Saturn. Body cam video from the scene shows Jackson refusing while officers try to pull him out, at which time Jackson sped off and dragged Officer Midlin along with him.
Police chased Jackson at speeds reaching 100 miles per hour, but lost him on Interstate 90. He later turned himself in at 2:55 a.m. and was issued a $50,000 bond. Officer Midlin did not suffer any injuries.
Prior to the incident in Parma, Jackson had a warrant out for his arrest in Cleveland that alleged he hit the mother of his child multiple times in the head last December. No formal charges have been filed in that case at this time.
Frank Q. Jackson has had numerous run-ins with law enforcement in the past, including accusations of abducting and assaulting a woman in 2019 that later saw him plead guilty to a lesser misdemeanor charge and earn 18 months of probation. Mayor Jackson has come under scrutiny for his grandson's many misdeeds, but has consistently denied interfering in any of the criminal investigations.
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