A Florida deputy has resigned following a November incident in which he mistook the sound of an acorn hitting his vehicle for a muffled gunshot and consequently opened fire on a handcuffed suspect.
Jesse Hernandez, who served as deputy for the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office handed in his badge in December following the November 12 incident that was caught on bodycam footage.
The footage released by the department shows Hernandez walking to the rear passenger side of his patrol car to do a second search of the detained suspect who was placed in the backseat.
He suddenly yells "gunfire" in response to a pop sound he misidentified as a gunshot.
Convinced he's hit, Hernandez stumbles to the ground, rolls, and immediately gets back up and fires his gun multiple times at the back of his squad car as he repeatedly shouts "shots fired!"
At one point, he even falsely claims “I’m hit! I’m hit!” as he continues firing at the back of the vehicle.
You can see the bodycam footage below.
Marquis Jackson was the handcuffed suspect sitting inside the targeted vehicle.
Luckily, he was uninjured from the ambush but the police confirmed the "situation was traumatic" for Jackson.
Police also stated that no weapon had been located.
Authorities were responding to a complaint from Jackson's girlfriend, who claimed the suspect committed grand theft auto and threatened her with calls and texts.
She also informed the deputies that Jackson had a silencer but didn't know where it was, and that he had more than one weapon.
Jackson was then "detained, searched, handcuffed" and was seated in the backseat of Hernandez's car as deputies continued their investigation of the stolen vehicle before Hernandez reacted impulsively to the perceived sound of a gunshot.
Sergeant Beth Roberts who was with him also "responded with gunshots towards the car as well in response to the perceived threat."
Police said that because the facts and evidence from the investigation determined Roberts' use of deadly force was "objectively reasonable" given Hernandez's insistence that he had been shot, she was exonerated.
Social media users face-palmed over the misfire and responded with levity.
Others expressed serious concerns over the debacle.
Sheriff Eric Aden issued a statement that read, in part:
"Immediately we began working diligently to determine the complete sequence of events and facts surrounding what transpired."
"Deputy Hernandez resigned during the course of our investigation but was ultimately found to have violated policy. The deputies were cleared however of any criminal wrongdoing."
Aden continued:
"We are limited in further response due to pending litigation."
"But let this be clear, we understand this situation was traumatic for Mr. Jackson and all involved and have incorporated this officer involved shooting it into our training to try to ensure nothing similar happens again."
The Sheriff expressed relief that Jackson was not injured and added the department had no reason to think Hernandez "acted with any malice."
While he did not warrant the former deputy's actions, Aden said the department believed Hernandez felt his life was in "immediate peril" and that his response was based on the "totality of circumstances surrounding this fear."
Aden concluded with:
"Just as we have an obligation to protect our officers so they can go home safely to their families, law enforcement has the same obligation to any citizen being investigated for a crime.”
The Sheriff's office confirmed both the former deputy and sergeant have been current on resistance training and firearms qualifications.
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