Posted 2/9/24

A Columbia man has been found guilty on federal firearms charges for a shootout with officers after allegedly beating his ex-partner.

Jamal Gardner beat and tried to strangle the mother of his children. About an hour later, a Columbia police officer initiated a traffic stop to a vehicle for reckless driving and was greeted by the driver getting out of his vehicle, holding an AR-15 rifle.

The driver, identified as Gardner, began firing at the officer right away, prompting the officer to take cover and return fire.

Gardner then fled into a nearby home and continued shooting at responding officers. The shootout lasted two hours, and Garner fired about 80 rounds at law enforcement from at least four firearms before escaping from the residence. He was then arrested a few days later in Michigan.

Gardner will be sentenced a later date. If the court finds that Gardner qualifies as an Armed Career Criminal, he will be sentenced to a mandatory minimum of 15 years to life in federal prison.

Additional charges relating to Gardner’s attempted murder of multiple Columbia Police Department officers and his aggravated assault on his former domestic partner are pending.