diff --git a/cmd/cmd.go b/cmd/cmd.go
index 3bb8b06ec10..dc288e43906 100644
--- a/cmd/cmd.go
+++ b/cmd/cmd.go
@@ -680,6 +680,17 @@ func DeleteHandler(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
 		return err
 	}
 
+	// Unload the model if it's running before deletion
+	opts := &runOptions{
+		Model:     args[0],
+		KeepAlive: &api.Duration{Duration: 0},
+	}
+	if err := loadOrUnloadModel(cmd, opts); err != nil {
+		if !strings.Contains(err.Error(), "not found") {
+			return fmt.Errorf("unable to stop existing running model \"%s\": %s", args[0], err)
+		}
+	}
+
 	for _, name := range args {
 		req := api.DeleteRequest{Name: name}
 		if err := client.Delete(cmd.Context(), &req); err != nil {
diff --git a/cmd/cmd_test.go b/cmd/cmd_test.go
index 0f8863cc770..9d23f3e963e 100644
--- a/cmd/cmd_test.go
+++ b/cmd/cmd_test.go
@@ -2,11 +2,17 @@ package cmd
 
 import (
 	"bytes"
+	"context"
+	"encoding/json"
+	"net/http"
+	"net/http/httptest"
 	"os"
 	"path/filepath"
+	"strings"
 	"testing"
 
 	"github.com/google/go-cmp/cmp"
+	"github.com/spf13/cobra"
 
 	"github.com/ollama/ollama/api"
 )
@@ -204,3 +210,63 @@ Weigh anchor!
 		}
 	})
 }
+
+func TestDeleteHandler(t *testing.T) {
+	stopped := false
+	mockServer := httptest.NewServer(http.HandlerFunc(func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+		if r.URL.Path == "/api/delete" && r.Method == http.MethodDelete {
+			var req api.DeleteRequest
+			if err := json.NewDecoder(r.Body).Decode(&req); err != nil {
+				http.Error(w, err.Error(), http.StatusBadRequest)
+				return
+			}
+			if req.Name == "test-model" {
+				w.WriteHeader(http.StatusOK)
+			} else {
+				w.WriteHeader(http.StatusNotFound)
+			}
+			return
+		}
+		if r.URL.Path == "/api/generate" && r.Method == http.MethodPost {
+			var req api.GenerateRequest
+			if err := json.NewDecoder(r.Body).Decode(&req); err != nil {
+				http.Error(w, err.Error(), http.StatusBadRequest)
+				return
+			}
+			if req.Model == "test-model" {
+				w.WriteHeader(http.StatusOK)
+				if err := json.NewEncoder(w).Encode(api.GenerateResponse{
+					Done: true,
+				}); err != nil {
+					http.Error(w, err.Error(), http.StatusInternalServerError)
+				}
+				stopped = true
+				return
+			} else {
+				w.WriteHeader(http.StatusNotFound)
+				if err := json.NewEncoder(w).Encode(api.GenerateResponse{
+					Done: false,
+				}); err != nil {
+					http.Error(w, err.Error(), http.StatusInternalServerError)
+				}
+			}
+		}
+	}))
+
+	t.Setenv("OLLAMA_HOST", mockServer.URL)
+	t.Cleanup(mockServer.Close)
+
+	cmd := &cobra.Command{}
+	cmd.SetContext(context.TODO())
+	if err := DeleteHandler(cmd, []string{"test-model"}); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("DeleteHandler failed: %v", err)
+	}
+	if !stopped {
+		t.Fatal("Model was not stopped before deletion")
+	}
+
+	err := DeleteHandler(cmd, []string{"test-model-not-found"})
+	if err == nil || !strings.Contains(err.Error(), "unable to stop existing running model \"test-model-not-found\"") {
+		t.Fatalf("DeleteHandler failed: expected error about stopping non-existent model, got %v", err)
+	}
+}
diff --git a/server/routes.go b/server/routes.go
index 6bd3a93f5a9..23f9dbfd9b8 100644
--- a/server/routes.go
+++ b/server/routes.go
@@ -693,7 +693,12 @@ func (s *Server) DeleteHandler(c *gin.Context) {
 
 	m, err := ParseNamedManifest(n)
 	if err != nil {
-		c.JSON(http.StatusInternalServerError, gin.H{"error": err.Error()})
+		switch {
+		case os.IsNotExist(err):
+			c.JSON(http.StatusNotFound, gin.H{"error": fmt.Sprintf("model '%s' not found", cmp.Or(r.Model, r.Name))})
+		default:
+			c.JSON(http.StatusInternalServerError, gin.H{"error": err.Error()})
+		}
 		return
 	}
 
diff --git a/server/routes_test.go b/server/routes_test.go
index bffcea205d9..f7a7a22bead 100644
--- a/server/routes_test.go
+++ b/server/routes_test.go
@@ -15,9 +15,6 @@ import (
 	"strings"
 	"testing"
 
-	"github.com/stretchr/testify/assert"
-	"github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
-
 	"github.com/ollama/ollama/api"
 	"github.com/ollama/ollama/llm"
 	"github.com/ollama/ollama/openai"
@@ -30,24 +27,47 @@ func createTestFile(t *testing.T, name string) string {
 	t.Helper()
 
 	f, err := os.CreateTemp(t.TempDir(), name)
-	require.NoError(t, err)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("failed to create temp file: %v", err)
+	}
 	defer f.Close()
 
 	err = binary.Write(f, binary.LittleEndian, []byte("GGUF"))
-	require.NoError(t, err)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("failed to write to file: %v", err)
+	}
 
 	err = binary.Write(f, binary.LittleEndian, uint32(3))
-	require.NoError(t, err)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("failed to write to file: %v", err)
+	}
 
 	err = binary.Write(f, binary.LittleEndian, uint64(0))
-	require.NoError(t, err)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("failed to write to file: %v", err)
+	}
 
 	err = binary.Write(f, binary.LittleEndian, uint64(0))
-	require.NoError(t, err)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("failed to write to file: %v", err)
+	}
 
 	return f.Name()
 }
 
+// equalStringSlices checks if two slices of strings are equal.
+func equalStringSlices(a, b []string) bool {
+	if len(a) != len(b) {
+		return false
+	}
+	for i := range a {
+		if a[i] != b[i] {
+			return false
+		}
+	}
+	return true
+}
+
 func Test_Routes(t *testing.T) {
 	type testCase struct {
 		Name     string
@@ -64,12 +84,16 @@ func Test_Routes(t *testing.T) {
 
 		r := strings.NewReader(fmt.Sprintf("FROM %s\nPARAMETER seed 42\nPARAMETER top_p 0.9\nPARAMETER stop foo\nPARAMETER stop bar", fname))
 		modelfile, err := parser.ParseFile(r)
-		require.NoError(t, err)
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("failed to parse file: %v", err)
+		}
 		fn := func(resp api.ProgressResponse) {
 			t.Logf("Status: %s", resp.Status)
 		}
 		err = CreateModel(context.TODO(), model.ParseName(name), "", "", modelfile, fn)
-		require.NoError(t, err)
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("failed to create model: %v", err)
+		}
 	}
 
 	testCases := []testCase{
@@ -81,10 +105,17 @@ func Test_Routes(t *testing.T) {
 			},
 			Expected: func(t *testing.T, resp *http.Response) {
 				contentType := resp.Header.Get("Content-Type")
-				assert.Equal(t, "application/json; charset=utf-8", contentType)
+				if contentType != "application/json; charset=utf-8" {
+					t.Errorf("expected content type application/json; charset=utf-8, got %s", contentType)
+				}
 				body, err := io.ReadAll(resp.Body)
-				require.NoError(t, err)
-				assert.Equal(t, fmt.Sprintf(`{"version":"%s"}`, version.Version), string(body))
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to read response body: %v", err)
+				}
+				expectedBody := fmt.Sprintf(`{"version":"%s"}`, version.Version)
+				if string(body) != expectedBody {
+					t.Errorf("expected body %s, got %s", expectedBody, string(body))
+				}
 			},
 		},
 		{
@@ -93,17 +124,24 @@ func Test_Routes(t *testing.T) {
 			Path:   "/api/tags",
 			Expected: func(t *testing.T, resp *http.Response) {
 				contentType := resp.Header.Get("Content-Type")
-				assert.Equal(t, "application/json; charset=utf-8", contentType)
+				if contentType != "application/json; charset=utf-8" {
+					t.Errorf("expected content type application/json; charset=utf-8, got %s", contentType)
+				}
 				body, err := io.ReadAll(resp.Body)
-				require.NoError(t, err)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to read response body: %v", err)
+				}
 
 				var modelList api.ListResponse
 
 				err = json.Unmarshal(body, &modelList)
-				require.NoError(t, err)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to unmarshal response body: %v", err)
+				}
 
-				assert.NotNil(t, modelList.Models)
-				assert.Empty(t, len(modelList.Models))
+				if modelList.Models == nil || len(modelList.Models) != 0 {
+					t.Errorf("expected empty model list, got %v", modelList.Models)
+				}
 			},
 		},
 		{
@@ -112,16 +150,23 @@ func Test_Routes(t *testing.T) {
 			Path:   "/v1/models",
 			Expected: func(t *testing.T, resp *http.Response) {
 				contentType := resp.Header.Get("Content-Type")
-				assert.Equal(t, "application/json", contentType)
+				if contentType != "application/json" {
+					t.Errorf("expected content type application/json, got %s", contentType)
+				}
 				body, err := io.ReadAll(resp.Body)
-				require.NoError(t, err)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to read response body: %v", err)
+				}
 
 				var modelList openai.ListCompletion
 				err = json.Unmarshal(body, &modelList)
-				require.NoError(t, err)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to unmarshal response body: %v", err)
+				}
 
-				assert.Equal(t, "list", modelList.Object)
-				assert.Empty(t, modelList.Data)
+				if modelList.Object != "list" || len(modelList.Data) != 0 {
+					t.Errorf("expected empty model list, got %v", modelList.Data)
+				}
 			},
 		},
 		{
@@ -133,18 +178,92 @@ func Test_Routes(t *testing.T) {
 			},
 			Expected: func(t *testing.T, resp *http.Response) {
 				contentType := resp.Header.Get("Content-Type")
-				assert.Equal(t, "application/json; charset=utf-8", contentType)
+				if contentType != "application/json; charset=utf-8" {
+					t.Errorf("expected content type application/json; charset=utf-8, got %s", contentType)
+				}
 				body, err := io.ReadAll(resp.Body)
-				require.NoError(t, err)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to read response body: %v", err)
+				}
 
-				assert.NotContains(t, string(body), "expires_at")
+				if strings.Contains(string(body), "expires_at") {
+					t.Errorf("response body should not contain 'expires_at'")
+				}
 
 				var modelList api.ListResponse
 				err = json.Unmarshal(body, &modelList)
-				require.NoError(t, err)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to unmarshal response body: %v", err)
+				}
+
+				if len(modelList.Models) != 1 || modelList.Models[0].Name != "test-model:latest" {
+					t.Errorf("expected model 'test-model:latest', got %v", modelList.Models)
+				}
+			},
+		},
+		{
+			Name:   "Delete Model Handler",
+			Method: http.MethodDelete,
+			Path:   "/api/delete",
+			Setup: func(t *testing.T, req *http.Request) {
+				createTestModel(t, "model-to-delete")
 
-				assert.Len(t, modelList.Models, 1)
-				assert.Equal(t, "test-model:latest", modelList.Models[0].Name)
+				deleteReq := api.DeleteRequest{
+					Name: "model-to-delete",
+				}
+				jsonData, err := json.Marshal(deleteReq)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to marshal delete request: %v", err)
+				}
+
+				req.Body = io.NopCloser(bytes.NewReader(jsonData))
+			},
+			Expected: func(t *testing.T, resp *http.Response) {
+				if resp.StatusCode != http.StatusOK {
+					t.Errorf("expected status code 200, got %d", resp.StatusCode)
+				}
+
+				// Verify the model was deleted
+				_, err := GetModel("model-to-delete")
+				if err == nil || !os.IsNotExist(err) {
+					t.Errorf("expected model to be deleted, got error %v", err)
+				}
+			},
+		},
+		{
+			Name:   "Delete Non-existent Model",
+			Method: http.MethodDelete,
+			Path:   "/api/delete",
+			Setup: func(t *testing.T, req *http.Request) {
+				deleteReq := api.DeleteRequest{
+					Name: "non-existent-model",
+				}
+				jsonData, err := json.Marshal(deleteReq)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to marshal delete request: %v", err)
+				}
+
+				req.Body = io.NopCloser(bytes.NewReader(jsonData))
+			},
+			Expected: func(t *testing.T, resp *http.Response) {
+				if resp.StatusCode != http.StatusNotFound {
+					t.Errorf("expected status code 404, got %d", resp.StatusCode)
+				}
+
+				body, err := io.ReadAll(resp.Body)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to read response body: %v", err)
+				}
+
+				var errorResp map[string]string
+				err = json.Unmarshal(body, &errorResp)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to unmarshal response body: %v", err)
+				}
+
+				if !strings.Contains(errorResp["error"], "not found") {
+					t.Errorf("expected error message to contain 'not found', got %s", errorResp["error"])
+				}
 			},
 		},
 		{
@@ -153,17 +272,23 @@ func Test_Routes(t *testing.T) {
 			Path:   "/v1/models",
 			Expected: func(t *testing.T, resp *http.Response) {
 				contentType := resp.Header.Get("Content-Type")
-				assert.Equal(t, "application/json", contentType)
+				if contentType != "application/json" {
+					t.Errorf("expected content type application/json, got %s", contentType)
+				}
 				body, err := io.ReadAll(resp.Body)
-				require.NoError(t, err)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to read response body: %v", err)
+				}
 
 				var modelList openai.ListCompletion
 				err = json.Unmarshal(body, &modelList)
-				require.NoError(t, err)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to unmarshal response body: %v", err)
+				}
 
-				assert.Len(t, modelList.Data, 1)
-				assert.Equal(t, "test-model:latest", modelList.Data[0].Id)
-				assert.Equal(t, "library", modelList.Data[0].OwnedBy)
+				if len(modelList.Data) != 1 || modelList.Data[0].Id != "test-model:latest" || modelList.Data[0].OwnedBy != "library" {
+					t.Errorf("expected model 'test-model:latest' owned by 'library', got %v", modelList.Data)
+				}
 			},
 		},
 		{
@@ -180,20 +305,32 @@ func Test_Routes(t *testing.T) {
 					Stream:    &stream,
 				}
 				jsonData, err := json.Marshal(createReq)
-				require.NoError(t, err)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to marshal create request: %v", err)
+				}
 
 				req.Body = io.NopCloser(bytes.NewReader(jsonData))
 			},
 			Expected: func(t *testing.T, resp *http.Response) {
 				contentType := resp.Header.Get("Content-Type")
-				assert.Equal(t, "application/json", contentType)
+				if contentType != "application/json" {
+					t.Errorf("expected content type application/json, got %s", contentType)
+				}
 				_, err := io.ReadAll(resp.Body)
-				require.NoError(t, err)
-				assert.Equal(t, 200, resp.StatusCode)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to read response body: %v", err)
+				}
+				if resp.StatusCode != http.StatusOK { // Updated line
+					t.Errorf("expected status code 200, got %d", resp.StatusCode)
+				}
 
 				model, err := GetModel("t-bone")
-				require.NoError(t, err)
-				assert.Equal(t, "t-bone:latest", model.ShortName)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to get model: %v", err)
+				}
+				if model.ShortName != "t-bone:latest" {
+					t.Errorf("expected model name 't-bone:latest', got %s", model.ShortName)
+				}
 			},
 		},
 		{
@@ -207,14 +344,20 @@ func Test_Routes(t *testing.T) {
 					Destination: "beefsteak",
 				}
 				jsonData, err := json.Marshal(copyReq)
-				require.NoError(t, err)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to marshal copy request: %v", err)
+				}
 
 				req.Body = io.NopCloser(bytes.NewReader(jsonData))
 			},
 			Expected: func(t *testing.T, resp *http.Response) {
 				model, err := GetModel("beefsteak")
-				require.NoError(t, err)
-				assert.Equal(t, "beefsteak:latest", model.ShortName)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to get model: %v", err)
+				}
+				if model.ShortName != "beefsteak:latest" {
+					t.Errorf("expected model name 'beefsteak:latest', got %s", model.ShortName)
+				}
 			},
 		},
 		{
@@ -225,18 +368,26 @@ func Test_Routes(t *testing.T) {
 				createTestModel(t, "show-model")
 				showReq := api.ShowRequest{Model: "show-model"}
 				jsonData, err := json.Marshal(showReq)
-				require.NoError(t, err)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to marshal show request: %v", err)
+				}
 				req.Body = io.NopCloser(bytes.NewReader(jsonData))
 			},
 			Expected: func(t *testing.T, resp *http.Response) {
 				contentType := resp.Header.Get("Content-Type")
-				assert.Equal(t, "application/json; charset=utf-8", contentType)
+				if contentType != "application/json; charset=utf-8" {
+					t.Errorf("expected content type application/json; charset=utf-8, got %s", contentType)
+				}
 				body, err := io.ReadAll(resp.Body)
-				require.NoError(t, err)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to read response body: %v", err)
+				}
 
 				var showResp api.ShowResponse
 				err = json.Unmarshal(body, &showResp)
-				require.NoError(t, err)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to unmarshal response body: %v", err)
+				}
 
 				var params []string
 				paramsSplit := strings.Split(showResp.Parameters, "\n")
@@ -250,8 +401,16 @@ func Test_Routes(t *testing.T) {
 					"stop \"foo\"",
 					"top_p 0.9",
 				}
-				assert.Equal(t, expectedParams, params)
-				assert.InDelta(t, 0, showResp.ModelInfo["general.parameter_count"], 1e-9, "Parameter count should be 0")
+				if !equalStringSlices(params, expectedParams) {
+					t.Errorf("expected parameters %v, got %v", expectedParams, params)
+				}
+				paramCount, ok := showResp.ModelInfo["general.parameter_count"].(float64)
+				if !ok {
+					t.Fatalf("expected parameter count to be a float64, got %T", showResp.ModelInfo["general.parameter_count"])
+				}
+				if math.Abs(paramCount) > 1e-9 {
+					t.Errorf("expected parameter count to be 0, got %f", paramCount)
+				}
 			},
 		},
 		{
@@ -260,16 +419,23 @@ func Test_Routes(t *testing.T) {
 			Path:   "/v1/models/show-model",
 			Expected: func(t *testing.T, resp *http.Response) {
 				contentType := resp.Header.Get("Content-Type")
-				assert.Equal(t, "application/json", contentType)
+				if contentType != "application/json" {
+					t.Errorf("expected content type application/json, got %s", contentType)
+				}
 				body, err := io.ReadAll(resp.Body)
-				require.NoError(t, err)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to read response body: %v", err)
+				}
 
 				var retrieveResp api.RetrieveModelResponse
 				err = json.Unmarshal(body, &retrieveResp)
-				require.NoError(t, err)
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatalf("failed to unmarshal response body: %v", err)
+				}
 
-				assert.Equal(t, "show-model", retrieveResp.Id)
-				assert.Equal(t, "library", retrieveResp.OwnedBy)
+				if retrieveResp.Id != "show-model" || retrieveResp.OwnedBy != "library" {
+					t.Errorf("expected model 'show-model' owned by 'library', got %v", retrieveResp)
+				}
 			},
 		},
 	}
@@ -286,14 +452,18 @@ func Test_Routes(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Run(tc.Name, func(t *testing.T) {
 			u := httpSrv.URL + tc.Path
 			req, err := http.NewRequestWithContext(context.TODO(), tc.Method, u, nil)
-			require.NoError(t, err)
+			if err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("failed to create request: %v", err)
+			}
 
 			if tc.Setup != nil {
 				tc.Setup(t, req)
 			}
 
 			resp, err := httpSrv.Client().Do(req)
-			require.NoError(t, err)
+			if err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("failed to do request: %v", err)
+			}
 			defer resp.Body.Close()
 
 			if tc.Expected != nil {