Broward Sheriff Tony Said Deputies Did Their Job In Shooting Man With Gun
TAMARAC (CBSMiami) - Cell phone video captured the moments just before Broward Sheriff's deputies were forced to fire after a man pointed a gun at them.
Deputies were sent to an apartment complex in the 5800 block of Northwest 57 Court Thursday evening around 7 p.m. after getting word that a woman had been shot.
Neighbors said the man that the deputies shot and a woman had been arguing and fighting.
"I hear all kinds of yelling and screaming," said Howard Reicher. "The two of them are almost arm in arm, wrestling with each other, and I hear a gunshot go off and the girl kicked the guy down the stairs."
Reicher was sitting outside when it all began. He said when sheriff's deputies arrived the armed man, identified as 32-year-old Kimani Pearce, remained on the outside stairs refusing to let first responders up to the apartment to help the woman who had been shot.
"The police were just saying drop the gun, drop the gun. There was one police lady in the car saying drop the gun, drop the gun. He refused, he just stood there for 20 minutes while she was upstairs bleeding," said Wendy Richland who lives in the complex.
When Pearce pointed the gun at the deputies, they shot him. Pearce who was struck multiple times was taken to an area hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
Deputies found 31-year-old Merica Green, Pearce's girlfriend, bleeding from a gunshot wound to the torso in the couple's apartment. Her injury is not life-threatening. Tamarac Fire Rescue took her to the hospital, is expected to survive.
Broward Sheriff Gregory Tony said his deputies had no choice.
"He shot someone inside the house, he took it upon himself to stand on the landing and stop our deputies from going in there and safeguarding and treating this individual. Only after 20 plus minutes of trying to get this thing took deescalate, he elected to point a weapon at our deputies in a hostile manner, so they did an outstanding job," said Tony.
Pearce is now facing charges for aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and several counts of aggravated assault on an officer.
The veteran captain who fired his weapon, as well as the other five responding deputies, have been placed on administrative assignment. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is investigating the shooting.
