James Lowell Capoot was a 43-year-old Vallejo police officer killed on November 17, 2011, while attempting to stop a bank robbery suspect. During a high-speed pursuit Capoot used a PIT maneuver to disable the suspect’s vehicle; the chase continued on foot and he was shot multiple times in the backyard of a residence. He was taken to Kaiser Permanente Medical Center and died of his wounds. Capoot had served 19 years with the Vallejo Police Department, previously served with the California Highway Patrol, and was a U.S.

Marine Corps veteran. He also coached the Vallejo High School varsity girls’ basketball team and was married with three daughters. The suspect, Henry Albert Smith Jr., was apprehended near the scene and later convicted of Capoot’s murder. A section of Highway 37 was renamed the Police Officer James Capoot Memorial Highway in January 2014.

Does anyone have memories of Officer Capoot or information about that night to share?