Two Off-Duty Tampa Cops Shoot, Kill Naked Woman
TAMPA (CBSMiami/AP) – Two off duty Tampa police officers were involved in a shooting of a naked woman who was allegedly threatening them.
The officers have been identified as Detective Rocky Howard and Tampa police officer William Mechler.
The shooting happened at about 1:15 p.m. on Saturday, in the Spring Hill community just north of Tampa.
According to the Hernando County Sheriff's Office, the two men were at a social gathering when a "naked and irrational" woman approached them. The woman was also armed with a weapon, which ultimately led one or both of the officers to shoot her, according to the department. She died on scene.
Hernando Sheriffs Office's spokeswoman Lt. Cinda Moore said she could not comment on what the woman specifically said, or did, or whether she was told to drop the weapon.
Both officers have been placed on administrative leave.
This isn't the first naked shooting that ended fatally in the Tampa-area though; just two weeks before, a naked freshman from the University of South Alabama was shot by a campus police officer.
Police said that Gil Collar, 18, had taken LSD and went to the police station acting aggressively and pounding on the glass. That is when an officer went outside with a gun.
The officer was said to repeatedly back away from Collar before firing.
An attorney for the student's family says Collar never touched the officer and the fatal shooting never should have happened. Authorities have said a grand jury will review that shooting to determine whether charges should be filed.
The shooting led to protests by students who attended the University of South Alabama with Collar.
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