Cops: Fla. deputy shoots, kills rampage suspect who attacked him with boat oar
FRUITLAND PARK, Fla. — A Florida sheriff’s deputy shot and killed a man who police say repeatedly tried to hit him in the head with an oar as he attempted to escape in a boat, reports CBS affiliate WKMG.
Police had responded to a report of a hit-and-run at a store in Fruitland Park, Florida when they first encountered Wayne Donald Dorsey, authorities said.
Dorsey, 49, had crashed into the store, as well as another vehicle, before trying to carjack an occupied vehicle, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office said.
Witness Bob Hannon said he saw the chaos at the store and pulled over to help, but Dorsey smashed through a fence and into Hannon’s car, before driving his battered vehicle away.
“He intentionally went, ‘bam,’ and took off,” Hannon told WKMG. “If I would (have gotten) out of the car, I probably wouldn’t be here right now.”
Investigators said Dorsey continued driving, with deputies giving chase, before he crashed while driving through a Citgo gas station.
Dorsey then got out of the car and ran off, leading deputies on a chase that ended when Dorsey reached a lake and got into a boat. A pursuing deputy got about chest-deep into the water when Dorsey began swinging a boat oar at his head, said Fred Jones, a spokesman for the sheriff’s office.
The deputy first used his stun gun, but it was ineffective, Jones said, so the deputy shot Dorsey with his service weapon. Dorsey was pronounced dead at the scene.
“You never want to have to use your weapon in a situation,” Jones said. “It’s concerning from a deputy’s perspective when you’re in such a vulnerable place as chest-deep in water.”
The deputy has been put on administrative leave, which is standard protocol.
