ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Three Pinellas County Sheriff's deputies are "justified" in shooting an armed man who was running toward his family after threatening them.
The "justified" ruling came from the Pinellas County Use of Deadly Force Investigative Task Force after it thoroughly examined the events surrounding the Nov. 8 shooting. St. Petersburg Police Chief Anthony Holloway, who headed the investigation, provided the information Tuesday morning.
According to authorities, around 10:30 p.m. on Nov. 8, Pinellas County deputies were called to a home on 47th Avenue North near 25th Street North after getting reports of a "domestic disturbance."
Investigators say 32-year-old Jeremey Reed fought with his wife and teenage stepson and stepdaughter. At some point, Reed allegedly pointed a gun at his stepdaughter and asked, "Wanna have some fun tonight?"
When the three deputies arrived at the home, the woman and her two children were outside. They reportedly told deputies what happened, including the armed threat. This led deputies to call for Reed's arrest for aggravated assault.
Not long after this, Reed reportedly walked out of the house with a gun in his hand and began to run toward where his family was talking to deputies. Investigators say the three deputies ordered him to stop and drop the weapon and when he ignored those commands and kept running, the deputies opened fire.
Reed was shot several times and was rushed to the hospital with critical injuries. He survived the shooting and was later taken to the Pinellas County Jail where he is still receiving medical care.
Holloway said it's now up to Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri to determine when to reinstate his three deputies, Deputy Jesse Creaser, Deputy Dylan Schultz and Corporal Stuart Kellman.
The Pinellas County Use of Deadly Force Investigative Task Force was established in 2020 to "ensure" investigations into law enforcement use of deadly force are "thorough, complete and objective." As a result, all investigations into the use of deadly force are done by other county agencies and not by the agency directly involved in the investigation.
For this investigation, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office was not involved because the deputies involved were from that agency.