A late-night traffic stop on Jacksonville’s Northside ended in tragedy Friday when a man wanted on an out-of-county attempted murder warrant died from what investigators say was a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office officers pulled the vehicle over just after 9:45 p.m. near New Berlin Road and Starratt Road. According to JSO, officers made repeated announcements and then used pepperballs in an effort to get the man to step out of the vehicle. Drone footage from the scene reportedly showed a firearm in the man’s lap along with signs of a self-inflicted injury, and investigators later concluded he shot himself at the very start of the stop. The man was pronounced dead after officers cleared the vehicle and secured the scene. His name and the county where the warrant originated have not yet been released, and the sheriff’s office says the case remains under active investigation, as reported by News4JAX.
Detectives from JSO’s Homicide Unit and Crime Scene Unit, along with the Medical Examiner’s Office, are handling the investigation into the shooting and the events surrounding the stop.
How The Tools Work
The sheriff’s office says officers turned to pepperballs as a less-lethal option to encourage the man to comply while they tried to take him into custody safely. PepperBall, the manufacturer, describes the rounds as small spheres filled with a powdered irritant that burst on impact, spreading the irritant. Agencies use them as a middle-ground tool between verbal commands and more serious uses of force…