YORK COUNTY — Two James City County police officers shot and killed a man Wednesday afternoon who was coming after them with a claw hammer inside a Home Depot in York County, according to York-Poquoson Sheriff Ron Montgomery.
Several James City officers heard a dispatch call at about 3:25 p.m. about a man who had stabbed a woman in the parking lot in front of a Ross Dress for Less clothing store in the 6600 block of Mooretown Road.
That’s in the northern part of York County, close to the James City border.
As officers headed to the scene, a witness told 911 dispatchers that he was following the man into the nearby Home Depot. The James City officers got to the scene before York County sheriff’s deputies, who were also en route.
“Officers entered the Home Depot, encountered the individual inside who had a hammer at that time,” James City County Police Chief Mark Jamison said at a News conference Wednesday evening. “Several commands were given for that individual to drop the hammer.”
“The individual refused, lifted the hammer over his head and aggressively ran toward the officer, and shots were fired,” Jamison said.
Police confronted the man at 3:32 p.m., about seven minutes after the initial 911 call. The 33-year-old North Carolina man died inside the Home Depot.
The man’s name was not immediately released, with Montgomery saying the Sheriff’s Office is working with a local police department in North Carolina to notify his next of kin.
The man did not know the woman he stabbed, Montgomery said, adding that there was no argument or words spoken between them before the attack outside Ross’.
“He randomly picked her,” Montgomery said. “She was shopping inside the store, and when he came into the store, he immediately attacked her as she was leaving. … And then the attack continued out in front of the store.”
Peter Dujardin/Daily Press
Two James City County Police officers shot and killed a 33-year-old North Carolina man inside this area of a York County Home Depot on Jan. 28, 2026,
The attack, which Montgomery said is captured on Ross’ surveillance video, lasted “about two or three minutes.”
The woman was taken to the hospital, but “it appears she’s going to be fine.”
“She had superficial cuts on both sides of her neck, bruising on her face where he kicked her when she was down, but everything I’ve heard is that she’s going to be fine.”
Investigators believe the woman was stabbed with a box cutter or similar instrument, he said, though deputies were still looking for it several hours later. “We believe it’s still inside the store,” Montgomery said at the news conference.
At least five James City County officers went into the store, Jamison said. The witness who previously followed the man into the store had also alerted staff and customers.
Store employees directed the police officers to the aisle where the man was. As officers were looking for him, “People are saying, “Hey, he’s this way, he went this way,” Jamison said.
“As our officers encountered the suspect, there were still people around,” Jamison said, saying officers asked those customers to step back as they tried to get the man to drop the hammer.
“So the other people inside … saw this unfortunately happen,” Jamison said. York County deputies were arriving just as the shooting occurred.
None of the officers were injured by either the hammer or the gunfire. No customers in the store were hurt.
Peter Dujardin/Daily Press
Two James City County Police officers shot and killed a man inside this Home Depot on Jan. 28, 2026. Police said he was coming after officers with a claw hammer.
The York County Sheriff’s Office will lead the investigation into the death, given that it occurred in York County. But Montgomery said his office will work closely with James City County on the investigation.
Both of the officers who fired their weapons were wearing body-worn cameras. Jamison said he had watched the videos, while Montgomery said he viewed portions of them.
Neither Montgomery nor Jamison would say how many shots were fired, saying they were still determining that number. They also declined to say how many feet separated the officers from the hammer-wielding man at the time of the shooting or how many times officers commanded him to drop the hammer.
Both of the James City officers are experienced, Jamison said, with one having between 5 and 10 years on the force and another having about 20 years of service.
The York commonwealth’s attorney’s office will make the final call as to whether the shooting was justified. But both men said they believed it was.
“Based on the preliminary information that I have from my investigators right now, I believe that the James City County officers did exactly what they were trained to do,” Montgomery said. “They took the steps that were necessary to protect themselves and the other people that were in that store.”
Jamison seconded that. “This guy randomly chose someone to stab,” he said. “We don’t know what he was going to do in here.”
One of the fortunate things about the case, Montgomery said, is the regional 911 center that allows James City, Williamsburg and York County officers to hear the calls of all three jurisdictions.
“Our officers were close by, and like we have many times before, we … came over here to see if we could help out,” Jamison said.
“If we get a dangerous person walking around stabbing people, we can help out … just like they would help us out in these situations.”
Both officers involved in the shooting, Jamison said, will be on modified leave pending the investigation.
Peter Dujardin, 757-897-2062, [email protected]