Newly-released body camera footage shows the moment a now-former Florida deputy opened fire shot at an unarmed Black man inside a patrol vehicle after he mistook the sound of an acorn falling as a gunshot, according to NBC News.
The Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office released the video on Monday (February 15), which shows Deputy Jesse Hernandez repeatedly yelling "Shots fired!" as he falls to the ground and unloads his gun into the vehicle, which was holding a handcuffed Marquis Jackson.
Hernandez was one of four deputies who responded to a call on November 12 in Fort Walton Beach after a woman reported her boyfriend, identified as Jackson, refused to return her car, the sheriff's office said in a statement. She also told deputies he made threats via text and that he had a silencer and another weapon, though she wasn't sure where they were, officials state.
Jackson approached the scene 10 minutes after deputies arrived, and authorities detained, searched, and handcuffed him before placing him in the back of Hernandez's patrol car.
Two of the deputies went to look for the missing vehicle, which was three miles away, while Sgt. Beth Roberts spoke with the woman to write up the affidavit. Hernandez searched Jackson for a second time, and after completing the search, an acorn could be seen hitting the top of his patrol car, according to an internal investigation report from January.
When Roberts asked where the shots were coming from, Hernandez replied, "In the car." He also shouts he was "hit" and that Jackson, who's unarmed and handcuffed, "shot through the car." When Hernandez fired into the patrol vehicle, Roberts shot at the car, as well.
Jackson suffered no injuries in the shooting, and no weapons were found on his person. He was later taken to the county courthouse and later released with no charges.
In a Facebook update following the incident, Jackson said he was left traumatized from the ordeal. He remembers the windows shattering around him as bullets flew through the car.
"All I could do was lean over and play dead to prevent getting shot in the head," he wrote last week. "I was scared to death and I knew all I could depend on was God!"
He continued, "I was blessed not to get hit by any bullets or get hurt physically but mentally, I’m not ok. I haven’t been the same since and I don’t think this feeling I have will ever change. I truly believe I’m damaged for life!"
The sheriff’s Office of Professional Standards launched an internal investigation into Hernandez and Roberts' actions on the same day of the incident. They found Hernandez's use of force was not "objectively reasonable" and violated policy. He resigned in December before the investigation concluded, according to reporters.
Investigators said Roberts' actions were "objectively reasonable." Neither of them faces criminal charges in the shooting.
"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," Okaloosa County Sheriff Eric Aden said in a statement. "We are very thankful Mr. Jackson wasn't injured and we have no reason to think former Deputy Hernandez acted with any malice."
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