JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — JSO officers are investigating an officer-involved shooting on the Northside.
Police said a traffic stop for a red light violation led to a shootout at the intersection of Lem Turner road and Dunn Avenue.
Police said the driver was cooperative but it was a different story with that passenger.
Police also said no officers were injured in the shooting, and the suspect was taken to the hospital with serious injuries.
JSO pulled the white sedan over in the Big Chief Tire parking lot around 1 a.m. They said the traffic became suspicious when they noticed the front seat passenger was wearing a bulletproof vest.
“That passenger said I don’t talk to the police and refused to answer any questions,” JSO Chief T.K. Waters said.
Eventually, police asked him to step out of the car.
“As they were trying to place handcuffs on him, they noticed a firearm on the right side of his body with a magazine sticking out pretty far,” Chief Waters said.
Police said the passenger took a swing at the officer, broke free and began running, and that’s when he opened fire.
In the midst of the shootout, we’re told four others in the car ran off. JSO said three have been caught and one man is still on the loose.
Action News Jax Law and Safety expert Dale Carson has years of experience in law enforcement, including time with the FBI.
Carson said traffic stops can be unpredictable nowadays.
“Traffic stops and domestic violence situations are the most dangerous for police officers,” Carson said.
In this case, Carson said the community was also in danger.
“When all these people shoot at one another and they’re missing, then those bullets got to go somewhere,” Carson said.
JSO said no civilians were injured.
The suspect in the hospital has not been identified yet.