Bloody brawl erupts on Florida road when deputy responds to road rage call, cops say
A 911 call about a road rage incident turned chaotic when a responding deputy ended up in a bloody brawl with a belligerent driver along a Florida highway, according to investigators.
In the minutes that followed, the 38-year-old driver was hit twice with a taser and one of his dogs was pepper-sprayed, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office reported in an affidavit.
The violent arrest happened around 6:30 p.m. Saturday, July 27, when deputies responded to reports of people fighting on Highway 484 near Dunnellon, including a driver seen throwing trash from his car, officials say. Dunnellon is about an 85-mile drive northwest from Orlando.
Only one driver was at the scene when a deputy arrived, with two barking dogs in his back seat and a naked child standing in the front seat, officials say.
The driver refused to cooperate, insulted the deputy, and noted “I just fought one like you,” video shows.
A struggle erupted, resulting in the driver being bloodied, shot twice with a taser and pummeled by the deputy on the shoulder of the highway.
The suspect was secured only after other deputies arrived to help.
A search of vehicle revealed the child was “unbuckled, completely naked” and had “his own feces on him,” an affidavit reports.
“He was in the car with two dogs, one of which was aggressive as it attempted to attack deputies several times,” the report states.
“While canvassing the area of items the defendant threw outside of his vehicle, there was a total dollar amount of $15,415 recovered of various denominations.”
A field test revealed 8.5 grams of fentanyl was stored in a bag, officials said.
The driver, who lives 30 miles east of Dunnellon in Summerfield, was arrested and charged with:
- Two counts of felony battery on an officer
- Felony resisting an officer with violence
- Felony child neglect without great bodily harm
- Felony trafficking fentanyl
- Misdemeanor drug equipment possession
This story was originally published July 31, 2024 at 8:00 AM with the headline "Bloody brawl erupts on Florida road when deputy responds to road rage call, cops say."