UPDATE: Bradenton Man Dead in Deputy-Involved Shooting
Man in Jeep accelerated toward Sarasota sheriff's deputy prompting two deputies to open fire.
Updated 2:55 p.m. June 12
A 23-year-old Bradenton man is dead after being shot by a Sarasota County Sheriff's deputy Monday when he attempted to run over two deputies. A passenger in the Jeep remains at large.
Rodney G. Mitchell of 4910 26th Street East, Apt. 102, Bradenton, was pulled over in a white Jeep Liberty for a traffic stop by Deputy Adam Shaw, 23, at 9:32 p.m. at 28th Street and Washington Boulevard, according to the sheriff's office.
Shaw approached the driver’s side door from the rear of the vehicle and ordered the driver to put the Jeep in park as Sgt. Troy Sasse approached from the front driver’s side after arriving at the scene for back-up, according to the sheriff's office.
After initially stopped, the driver said “No,” shifted the vehicle into drive and accelerated in the direction of Sasse, said Wendy Rose, spokeswoman for the sheriff's office.
Fearing he would be struck by the vehicle, Sasse fired his gun two times while Shaw, concerned that Sgt. Sasse would be struck by the Jeep, also fired his gun twice toward the Jeep, Rose said.
The Jeep traveled south on Washington Boulevard when Mitchell apparently died from his injuries while driving, causing the Jeep to crash into several cars in a Sunoco parking lot, 2530 Washington Blvd., and struck a cement barrier, which stopped the Jeep from crashing into the convenience store, Rose said.
Tuesday morning, the Sunoco was open for regular business with the noticeable barrier crooked from the collision. A spray painted outline of the Jeep's footprint was marked in the lot, but no other signs of Monday's incident were visible.
The passenger in the Jeep fled the scene, Rose said.
For at least two hours, Washington Boulevard was closed off to traffic and more than 100 people gathered around the scene. As friends and family learned of the situation and the condition of the victim, some became hysterical and a small crowd broke through the taped perimeter prompting deputies and Sarasota Police to demand folks to get back. No physical force was needed to restrain the crowd. Officers placed an additional layer of crime scene tape around the perimeter for a barrier following the incident.
Both deputies are sequestered and being interviewed for the investigation, as per standard procedures, Rose said, and are on paid administrative leave.
Shaw was hired in January 2010 while Sasse, 33, was hired in October 2003.
According to the sheriff's office's Levels of Resistance general order, law enforcement officers are justified using deadly force to "cause that person immediately cease what she/she is doing" when another person's or an officer's life is immediate danger and doesn't matter if the person "dies as a result of being stopped."
The sheriff's office's deadly force policy is "to shoot, to stop the threat."
According to court records, Mitchell was driving on a suspended license, which he was cited for on May 15. The suspension stems from a March DUI, according to the citation issues by Sarasota Police Department. At the same May traffic stop, which was for a 1997 red Mitsubishi, a citation was also issued for illegally tinted windows.
Stay with Patch for more details.
Becca Hill
8:10 am on Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Why didn't the deputy disable the vehicle instead of taking out the driver?
Chimpie
9:25 am on Tuesday, June 12, 2012
How does a deputy disable a vehicle driving towards him?
tj2730
9:25 am on Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Why didn't the driver just stop the vehicle like he should have? This could have went totally different, but he chose how he wanted to handle the situation, and it wasn't by cooperating.
jak
2:53 pm on Tuesday, June 12, 2012
This 23 year old has a criminal history, including violence toward a law enforcement officer. He was not licensed to drive, has several prior arrests, and has a criminal hearing related to the latest traffic incident pending before he decided to behave the way he did. What are the police supposed to do? Lay down, put their feet up and just let the criminals run amok in our neighborhoods?
EBONY SHANTAZ
2:48 pm on Tuesday, June 12, 2012
HE WOULD OF NEVER HIT THAT POLICE, HE ISN'T THAT TYPE OF PERSON AND THERE IS ALWAYS MORE TO A STORY.!
jermia
3:08 pm on Tuesday, June 12, 2012
i was there wen the police started puttinn the tape it was sad from were i was at i saw the boy hand he was not movin i knew he was dead the police wrong i wanted to cryy but i couldnt becus i didnt knw him i probably seen him that same day but probably didnt knw wo he was or wat was goin to hapen to em wen his mama came on the scene she was snappin and all his familly was crying and snappin it was soo sad there was like a hundred people out thea hids mama ran through the yellow tape and tried to go see em dead in the car but the police rushed up to her and grabbed her and sum familly members had to hold her bak his frind or cusin who is a boy was snappin wen he came to da scene his peoples had to hold hem bak it was sad i guess his mama ran through the tape and saw him in the car dead then the police had to get her and then the whole familly was crying wen they found out he was dead his mama was screamin and praying oh god please pleasee god u can do anything god and she didnt want no body to touch her or hold her she walked down the road and bak prayin and screamin cryin and sumbody in his familly passed out and had to go to the hospital sumbody said he was still breathin shortly but the police just let him siit thea and even wen he was dead they still let him sit thea that was my first biggest crime scene ive eva seen in my life it was hundreds of people out the it was crazyy the police didnt have to kill em imhope he went to heaven
Debbie pete
8:57 am on Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Dont no what to say or how to feel I have five kids of my own and my heart really goes out to mother im so sorry
sdfsdfsdf
4:32 pm on Wednesday, June 13, 2012
I feel so sorry for the family, I didn't know this young man but there is so much more to the story. Something similar happened to my cousin and the cop that killed my cousin was found guilty and is going to prison.
SnoWhyte
7:13 pm on Friday, June 15, 2012
Used to live in Sarasota. They call me SnoWhyte. My deepest sympathy to his mother and all of his family. May you rest in peace Rodney.
Charles Schelle
3:18 pm on Tuesday, August 7, 2012
Update: State's Attorney and Sheriff's Office issue report regarding deputies shooting at Rodney Mitchell http://patch.com/A-wJQQ
cherry
8:07 pm on Wednesday, May 15, 2013
And justice he could of just taserd him im not trying to hear that cus at the end of the day god has the last say so and the MAYS family is a prayed up family and we WILL get peace reast easy my love