A Florida Keys police officer was injured after a suspect slammed a car door on his hand on Thursday during a traffic incident in which he fired a shot at the driver.
The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office said the incident occurred at about 7 a.m. at the 61-mile marker of the highway on Duck Key.
"The Sheriff’s Office is investigating a shooting incident this morning involving a Key Colony Beach police officer who discharged his firearm after having his hand caught in the door of a vehicle during a traffic stop," the police department said in a statement. "There were no injuries as a result of the firearm being discharged."
The injured officer, identified as Key Colony Beach Officer Charles Griffith, was acting as a backup during the traffic stop conducted by Jose Hernandez, a sheriff's deputy, initially over the vehicle's headlight and tag light being out.
The 1996 Chevrolet's license plate was also obscured by dirt and was unreadable, police said. The driver of the car is identified as 39-year-old Jerrett Bryan, who lives in Miami but is a long-time Monroe County resident who recently returned to the Keys for construction work.
When the officers asked Bryan if he could exit the vehicle, he refused and began rolling up his windows. The officers stopped him from closing the window and then opened the car door to remove Bryan from inside.
During the commotion, Bryan slammed the car door on Griffith's hand, police said.
Griffith pulled his hand away and fired once at the driver's side door, shattering the window. The shot did not hit Bryan, who fled the scene, police said.
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Hernandez then jumped into his vehicle and pursued Bryan, who was caught a short distance away and arrested.
Bryan faces numerous charges, including resisting arrest, fleeing and eluding police, battery on a law enforcement officer and driving with a suspended driver’s license.
Monroe County's Internal Affairs division will investigate whether the weapons discharge was justified under the circumstances.
