13-Year-Old Opens Fire Several Times On Florida Officers, Wounding 1, During Pursuit
A 13-year-old boy armed with a 9 mm semi-automatic handgun shot a Florida police officer — and ended up shot himself when another cop returned fire, according the Lakeland Police Department. Both the officer and teen are hospitalized with non-life-threatening wounds, police said at a Wednesday, May 10, press conference. The officer was hit in the left foot, while the boy was shot in the “lower extremities,” officials said. Investigators accused the boy of engaging police in at least two gunfights, both Wednesday at a crowded apartment community. “(The suspect) had no regard for life. None. Zero,” Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said at the press conference. “He may be 13 years chronologically, but he’s a hardened criminal willing to shoot it out with cops. And we’re going to do our very best to send him to prison for a very long time. ... He is a very dangerous, hardened criminal.” The series of events began around 5:15 p.m., when witnesses reported a white Dodge Avenger had been involved in a drive-by shooting at Simpson Park, police said. Officer Jamie Smith was nearby when he saw the vehicle and began a pursuit that ended with three people jumping from the vehicle and running, officials said.
Charlotte Observer
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