ST. PETERSBURG, Fla — The use of deadly force St. Petersburg officers used on Dec. 2 in St. Petersburg has been deemed "justifiable homicide" by the state attorney's office, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office said.
Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri relayed the news in a report addressed to St. Pete Police Chief Anthony Holloway. The sheriff's office took over the investigation per the established Pinellas County Use of Deadly Force Investigative Task Force protocols put in place last year.
According to the report, on Dec. 2, 2020, undercover detectives with the St. Petersburg Police Department's Special Investigative Unit were trying to locate 20-year-old Dominque Harris, who was wanted on felony child abuse charges.
Detectives found Harris at an apartment complex he was known to stay at and also found a car parked there with a license plate matching the number given to them in regards to Harris, the report says.
The report states detectives saw two men, who were later identified as Harris and a friend, leave the apartment complex and get into the car. However, detectives say they weren't able to positively identify either person at the time, according to the report. Detectives then followed the car to the Food Max located at 1400 18th Ave. S.
Once at the Food Max, the report says Harris and his friend went inside the store. A witness reportedly told detectives she saw a gun tucked into Harris' waistband while he was inside the store. According to the report, video surveillance at the store confirmed the witness' statement. Based on the description of the gun from the witness and the video, the report says it appears to be the same gun Harris used to shoot the undercover detective that night.
The report says Harris' friend stayed inside the store while he returned to the car and sat in the driver's seat. Undercover detectives report they still couldn't positively identify Harris as the person in the driver's seat, so they called in uniformed officers to assist in the identification.
The report says two officers in marked police cars made contact with Harris for about a minute. According to the report, officers say when they told Harris to get out of the car because he was under arrest for the child abuse charges, he refused. The report then says Harris rolled up his window and put the car in reverse, which leads one of the uniformed officers to use his baton to try to break Harris' driver's side window.
A witness says she heard officers tell Harris to "get out of the car," according to the report.
The report says witnesses and video confirm Harris "intentionally" reversed his car and backed into the front passenger side of one of the uniformed officer's patrol car. He then put his car in drive and accelerated, hitting a concrete barrier and tearing it out of the ground. He then reversed again and freed himself from the concrete pole and attempted to leave the parking lot.
The report goes on to state undercover officers at the scene tried to contain Harris to the Food Max parking lot using their cars.
Then, an undercover detective got out of his car and was "within feet" of Harris' driver's side door. The report says Harris pointed his gun through the window and fired multiple times at the undercover detective. That detective returned fire, the report says. The detective was taken to the hospital and underwent surgery for three through-and-through bullet wounds; he continues to recover.
Another undercover detective hurt her knee during the shooting but was not shot and was released from the hospital.
In response to Harris shooting at the undercover detective, the report says the remaining undercover detectives and one officer opened fire. The report states as detectives fired at Harris, he laid down across the front seat. He then reportedly continued to fire at officers and "remained a threat," laying down several more times while officers continued to return fire.
The report says a total of six officers shot at Harris 48 times. However, the report says investigators don't know how many shots hit Harris because the autopsy report is still unavailable.
The entire shooting took about 45 seconds, with the majority of the shots fired in the first 19 seconds, the report states.
The report concluded that based on the evidence, Harris resisted arrest on a felony child abuse charge and committed several felonies, including attempted murder of a police officer, while trying to get away from officers on Dec. 2. The report states Harris shot and "tried to murder" an undercover detective and "in justifiable fear for their lives and the lives of others," six officers "properly and lawfully shot and killed" Harris.
Part of the report details aspects of 20-year-old Harris' criminal record and previous interactions with law enforcement. According to the report, Harris had been arrested several times before and was a documented gang member.
You can read the full report here.