The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office today released a narrative report by the supervising sergeant who was in the house, with two other deputies, when a violent confrontation with a 32-year-old man on Brownstone Lane resulted in the man’s shooting death by a deputy on Dec. 15.
Troy Evan Gordon, 32, who lived with his grandmother, Mary Turner, at 61 Brownstone Lane, was shot and killed late Saturday afternoon in his garage, after he had allegedly been irate, destructive and wielding an 18-inch machete. After the shooting Sunday evening, authorities at the scene and a news release from the sheriff’s office stated that Gordon had gone on a rampage in the house and in the garage, and that he had “become violent towards his family earlier in the day.”
Gordon’s family is disputing that version of events. “They got a lot of things in the paper that’s not right,” Turner, 79, said on Monday. She was upset and intent on correcting the record, she said. “I raised that boy from 7 years old, and I’m not afraid of this boy.” Turner said he had not been violent toward her or anyone else in the house. “He was in the garage,” she said.
Turner said the shooting was unnecessary. “It’s a sad thing, and I’m upset about it,” she said.
The narrative, by Sgt. Larry Jones, does not mention the violence toward the family, but details the succession of events that led to the shooting after 911 received a call at 3:15 p.m. from Crystal Heart, a 29-year-old woman who lives at 61 Brownstone. Heart placed the call “in reference to a possible Baker/Marchmann Act,” the police report states. “Baker Act” is the colloquial name for the Florida Mental Health Act of 1971, which gives police, doctors or judges authority to seize a person against his or her will if that person has become a danger to others or to himself. The individual is then sent to a psychiatric ward for evaluation.
There is little question, in other words, that sheriff’s deputies were responding to an issue, initiated by a resident at the house, where an individual was perceived to be a danger, at least to himself, but also possibly to others. The report states as much: Heart “stated that Troy had been doing some drugs for the past week and his behavior had become un-usual (sic.) and she was in fear for his safety, Cruystal stated that she had offered to take him to A.A. [Alcoholics Anonymous] and counseling because he was going to hurt himself or someone else. Crystal stated that she had called Troy’s brother in [North Carolina] and informed him of Troy’s behavior.”
Turner would not speak to Jones at the scene the evening of the shooting, according to the report.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is investigating the shooting, not the sheriff’s office. Three deputies were at the house, according to Jones’s report, after the 3:15 call Sunday: Jones himself, and deputies Brandon Fiveash and Joseph Dailey. Fiveash is a seven-year veteran of the sheriff’f office, and a member of the department’s SWAT team. Dailey has been with the department since 2007. He is a K-9 handler.
Dailey and Fiveash were at the house first, preceding the arrival of Jones. Here’s how the report details the events that followed, as written by Jones.
After getting to the scene, Jones made contact with Fiveash in the kitchen area facing the garage. “Deputy Fiveash stated that Tray has been walking up and down the Street with a machete and a bible talking to himself and he was in the garage with the machete breaking things,” Jones wrote. Several neighbors described the same scene to a reporter Sunday evening. One neighbor, who lives next door to 61 Brownstone, said Gordon had at one point knelt in the street to pray, but that he’d also worried some children who’d come to talk to the neighbor about Gordon, because he had the machete. Another neighbor said Gordon had walked past his own two children with the machete.
Jones then asked Fiveash to draw his Taser. Jones “opened the laundry room door that leads into the garage,” Jones wrote. “At that point I shined my light in the garage, but I did not see Troy. I called out for him. Troy appeared from the left side of the garage. I observed a black male (Troy) in the garage with a machete talking to himself. I asked Troy to come and speak with me, he stated that he was not going down and he knows how the game goes. I, Sgt. L. Jones informed him that I just wanted to know what was going on. Troy stated that he would hurt/kill me if I attempted to come in after him. I informed Troy that I was not coming inside the garage area. At that time Troy retreated to the left side of the garage and returned with three lawn chairs and stacked them on top of a dresser that was at the door in an attempt to barricade himself in the garage.”
Maj. Steve Clair, the ranking member of the sheriff’s office at the scene Sunday evening, described the scene in similar terms, though at the time Clair mentioned two deputies had been in the house. Clair had mentioned Gordon “barricading himself” in the garage, and it had been unclear how, if he had barricaded himself, he could have charged the deputies. The report clarifies what happened next.
“When Troy walked away I, Sgt. L. Jones pushed the chairs down and attempted to regain communication with Troy,” Jones writes. “Troy then began acting aggressive towards me, I asked him to calm down.
Troy began to use profanity and became more aggressive, swinging the machete above his head striking a light bulb in the ceiling. I attempted to communicate with Troy once again. I backed up a step, Deputy Fiveath was to the left side of me, just slightly in front of me. At that time Troy placed the machete above his head and stated that he was going to kill us and we were going to need a body bag,” Jones writes.
At that point, “Troy came toward Deputy Fiveash and Deputy Dailey. Deputy Fiveash deployed his Taser. Tray fell backwards with the machete in hand.”
Clair had said that one of the deputies had fired the Taser, and that the Taser darts had, in fact, landed on Gordon. A Taser immobilizes an individual, when the darts reach their target. “At that time Deputy Fiveash stepped on the dresser with the intent to secure Tray,” Jones continues. “Once Deputy Fiveash stepped on the dresser he fell backwards. Deputy Dailey attempted to pull Deputy Fiveash backwards away from Troy. Approximately 2 seconds later Tray regained his composure and was moving in an upward manner (trying to regain his feet) with the machete toward Deputy Dailey. At
that point Deputy Dailey discharged his Glock sidearm at Troy.
“Troy was struck to the best of my knowledge, Deputy Fiveash regained his footing and went outside, and Deputy Dailey placed hand cuffs on Troy. Medic unit and Palm Coast Fire responded. Tray was pronounced deceased at the scene.”
Turner and Heart were in the house at the time of the shooting, but only the law enforcement officers were in the garage during the confrontation. It isn’t yet known if any neighbors witnessed the confrontation.
This afternoon, a friend and neighbor who was visiting Turner, but asked not to be named, said he had seen Gordon drive away and back to the house earlier Sunday afternoon, between 1 and 2 p.m., “smiling on the way to the store and back.” The neighbor said Gordon was “happy go lucky” at that point.
glad fly says
don’t you know the lawyers are lining up for this one…..sue for a million,settle for $100k,38%….do the math.
FB Insider says
So the headline reads “Details Emerge in Saturday’s Shooting Death As Gordon’s Family Disputes Police Version”. I’m curious as to what there is to dispute? They seem to only dispute that they weren’t AFRAID of him. That still doesn’t take away from the fact that he was ARMED and BARRICADED in a garage threatening to hurt and/or kill the very people there to help him. I’m sorry for the family of the subject but doesn’t seem like the Deputies had any options. Verbal commands, less-lethal deployment w/ no success and ultimately the firearm was the only thing that would stop the threat. My heart goes out to everyone involved. Like I said in the other article, nobody wins here.
Piss to the Max says
So why was he shoot several times!!!!!! That fail to mention that.
Geezer says
After reading this, I can state that the officers certainly failed at defusing the situation.
Perhaps more time was needed here, and MAYBE more help was needed…….
So Troy WAS immobilized for a brief period (where he could have been subdued).
Deputy Fiveash fell after deploying the Taser EFFECTIVELY, ready to be cuffed.
Had he not fallen, would Troy would still be alive?
Sgt. L. Jones pushed the chairs away. Did he remove the chairs in a violent swipe,
or a slow deliberate, and careful manner?
What happened here?
FB Insider says
“Geezer”,
You mention in your comment “Deputy Fiveash fell after deploying the Taser EFFECTIVELY, ready to be cuffed. Had he not fallen, would Troy would still be alive?”
Have you never tripped and fallen before? Beter yet have you ever attempted in a hurry to try to subdue an armed subject who is behind tons of debris used to barricade himself? I highly doubt it. Better yet, do you have the stones to even confront one? I doubt that too. Your quick to bash the Deputies, but would more than likely be the first one screaming for their help if you needed it.
Sad says
Very sad. Looks like someone called FCSO for help with a mentally ill family member and got a dead family member instead. I wasn’t there so I don’t really know what happened but its incredible the two deputies didn’t just back up, call for reinforcements (perhaps the type of people and equipment used in cell extraction work in jails) or even use a more powerful taser rather emptying out a gun magazine into this ill person. A Quick Draw McGraw culture exists within our society and that includes law enforcement too and this culture of violence has led to unmeasurable misery. I’m glad the family is raising issues and disputing the police version of events. I hope they ask Mr. Manfre for a full internal investigation in addition to FDLE’s investigation. For many years I’ve seen several relatively young, relatively overweight, relatively undertrained deputies unfairly throw their weight around in this town, exhibiting unnecessary high-testosterone behavior. Other young people in town have told me repeatedly that many FCSO deputies in their mid-twenties were maladjusted and bullied kids in high school, and now that they had a gun and a badge, they acted like tough guys. I said several, not most and definitely not all, so you die-hard fans of FCSO, I’m not looking to provoke a comment war with you. I’m not suggesting the deputies involved in this tragic killing are overweight or undertrained, or even that the acted in haste, I just don’t know enough. But a person died here and it is incumbent upon law enforcement as well as an independent body to thoroughly look into this. My condolences to the family.
Robert Lewis says
The only thing sad is your comment.
For the record, I am not a die-hard FCSO fan.
FB Insider says
“Sad”,
Your statement says ” its incredible the two deputies didn’t just back up, call for reinforcements (perhaps the type of people and equipment used in cell extraction work in jails) or even use a more powerful taser rather emptying out a gun magazine into this ill person.”
First of all, when someone is charging you and your in a small laundry room and the person is coming at you with a machete, are you going to pick up a phone and call for help, telling the attacker to hold on until reinforcements get there or are you going to defend yourself using the last means given to you to do so? Why do you think law enforcement carries a firearm? Secondly, a more powerful taser? How many things do you think law enforcement carries on their belt? The current tasers deploy 50,000 volts of electricity for 5 seconds (per deployment). This just shows you how amped up this individual must have been. I can assure you these two men did not wake up wanting to kill someone.
just a thought says
Regardless of what is being said, Larry Jones is one the most stand up deputy on the force. He is a man of integrity and I am sorry he has to go through all this.
JoJo says
HOUSTON! WE GOT A PROBLEM?
REPLY FROM HOUSTON: STAND DOWN.
Deep South says
He barricaded himself in the garage and was given direct order to “stand down”. He disobey the order, and proceeded to stay in the garage. He could of had perhaps guns in the garage. He scattered the light, wish now made the situation more difficult. Then he lunge at the officers not knowing what his choice of weapon was this time. Unfortunately, it was time for him to be taken down.
Biker says
“Sad Says”, an impartial investiagtion is underway. I also know Sgt Larry Jones and I consider him a fine person and as well as top notch law enforecement supervisor. I have no doubt that Sgt Jones intentions were to end this call without injury to anyone. What this story fails to spell out clearly, is the time frame in which all of the events in Sgt Jones report took place. These type of situations are usually fluid and take place over a matter of seconds, not minutes. It is easy to read the story on this website and play Monday morning quaterback. Let the proper authorities conduct their investigation, and stop the monday morning quaterbacking.
whodat says
It would seem that the actions of Sgt Jones by knocking the chairs down set off a fight or flight mentality with this individual. Sometimes that’s all it takes to set things in motion very quickly. Those actions angered this EDP and cost him his life.
Outsider says
I am certainly perplexed that you could POSSIBLY form such an opinion to what may or may not have transpired at the scene when NONE of you were there. My heart aches for the Deputy who was put in this situation, his life is changed FOREVER. YOU are the same person that calls 911 expecting that responders will do whatever they need to do to protect you and/or your family but feel it necessary to “Monday morning quarterback” and question their actions. I have personally know Larry Jones most of my life, he has ALWAYS been an incredible human being and an outstanding officer. While I don’t know the other two Deputies, they are respectable, hardworking and dedicated officers to this great community and did whatever they NEEDED to do to protect the community that REQUESTED assistance to this address as a result to a possible Baker Act. We have a SERIOUS epidemic in our society, well besides ignorance, it’s called illegal drugs and that’s what we should be addressing. What we should be saying is, thank you instead of making assumptions and judgements on something we have NO EARTHLY IDEA about. So I say, Thank you Jones, Fiveash, Dailey and ALL of the fine men and women of the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office for ALL that you do. Respectfully!
normal says
apparently you are all missing the point the man had a 18 inch machete and had it pointed towards the deputy after a deputy fell…. do you want to fight with a mentally unstable man with a machete, cause i would certainly not want to… .everyone is quick to call the cops when things go south but even quicker to blame them when someone gets hurt…
these cops put themselves in harms way so we dont have to…. give them credit for what they do
Outsider says
@ Sad: Others have repeatedly said some of the deputies were maladjusted yadyadyady….. Hearsay is not admissible evidence in a court of law. You make it quite clear as to why that’s an excellent idea.
w.ryan says
More details paint a clear picture of what went down. There are no winners!!!
Robert Lewis says
*First and foremost I am not a fan of Sheriff Don Fleming and not a fan of Sheriff-Elect Jim Manfre. I have bashed them on their previous stances. However, I support the FCSO in their decision.
Now that my disclaimer is out there:
Deputy Dailey saved a life.
Had Deputy Dailey not acted, we would have been reading about a funeral for a Sheriff’s Deputy. I am not going to get into the technical details, as I believe Deputy Jones narrative speaks for itself.
Rather, let me speak of the job of being a Law Enforcement Officer. We often bitch about them for pulling us over, and we complain about tickets and how they are never there when something happens. Every day they put on a uniform to protect and serve their community. They put on a bullet proof vest to protect them from bad guys.
Look around, look at what has happened in Tusan, Auroa and Newtown. People that might have very well been “good people”, utilize a weapon in their times of psychological distress. Their desire to inflict harm on to others is a problem, that we in society are to quickly and readily to excuse.
A police officer’s life was saved by a man with a deadly weapon. After multiple attempts to deescalate a situation in a non evasive way the use of deadly physical force was used. I am sorry to the Gordon family. However, I am not sorry that the life of a police officer was saved over someone who was abusing a substance and attempted to kill police officers.
Every year hundreds of police officers are murdered in the performance of their duties. To protect and serve and sometimes their last acts of valor to save others.
Before we bash the FCSO and monday morning quarter back, lets step back and look at the situation with all the facts. I feel for Deputy Dailey as he had to make one of the most difficult decisions in his life.
was there says
All you people that like to.monday morning quarter back the scene. Well I can tell you that Dep. Dailey is a hero! He pulled back Dep. Fiveash from possible death or at least permanent disfigeration. For you people to second guess their actions without being there is disgraceful. I’m shocked that it took so long for this guy to he addressed. It just shows how stupid people are in this town. Tue guy was smoking synthetic marijuana all day and was dillusional, why don’t u go smoke some and see what happens? All I have to day is bravo fcso. I’m glad my kid wasn’t in the path of this douch bags machete.
Sad says
I read this article a second time and just noticed the unfortunate person who was killed was black. Anyone who has half a mind is well acquainted with statistics that prove that arrests, incarceration, and even violent police action is disproportionately skewed against minorities. All the more reason for a swift full investigation that is independent and transparent. Details and truth need to be published fast! Otherwise Rev. Sharpton, Rev. Jackson and others would be justified in visiting our fair city.
anonymous 3 says
@ SAD
In my neighborhood we have a white teenager who is allowed to terrorize me and my neighbors at will. He threatens to run us down with his unregistered car or release a pit bull on us and is allowed to do whatever he wants by his doting parents. Neighbors report seeing him with a gun. Calls to the FCSO have done nothing. One deputy even yelled at me for complaining to the FCSO about this young man’s irrational behavior. I believe, that had this young man been black, justice would have been swift or worse.
Alex says
No visual or audio recording of the encounter.
“Recollections” may not be accurate or just plain self serving,
Manfre’s proposed camera may be the answer.
How Sad says
Why didnt the shoot Troy in the legs or in the shoulder so it would just make him fall down and then quickly go cuff him? Seems to me like the cops did their job wrong.They came to help Troy NOT kill him.
Deep South says
Once the suspect became violent, and disobey the order to “stand his ground”, and then lunged at the officer with a deadly weapon, it became a “shoot to kill” decision.
Since 1987 says
Try and educate yourself a little about the training police officers go through. They are not trained to “injure” a person with a gun. They are trained to shoot and ‘stop’ the action. And let me point out that I did not write ‘shoot to kill’ or ‘shoot to injure.’ They did their job, now let the investigation finish.
rthomp11 says
Some people just amaze me. They call the police when they don’t want to deal with a situation then blame the same police when things don’t turn out the way they wanted it too or expected it too. Of course these are probably the same people that don’t believe in God but are still praying to Him when they are kissing their butts goodbye for doing something stupid.
I’ve known Larry Jones since high school too, well over 25+ years. He is the most upstanding caring officer any police department could ever have on their force. He did not nor would he do anything in a violent manor toward anyone, especially while on duty. To even suggest it just means you don’t know him or his fellow officers or what it means to be an cop.
And no, I’m not an cop. I’m not married to one. I don’t have one in my family. I do however, have a deep respect for what they and our military do every minute, every second of every day of their lives. They are the reason we live in a country like the USA and not China or Korea or Syria. Think about that the next time you see a cop. They aren’t just there to give you a ticket for speeding.
FRANK DILIBERTO says
Here we have a deranged person who came at a deputy with a weapon to do him harm or kill him, and all I here is defense for the victim? ARE YOU SERIOUS!
Thank god our deputies are ok and able to go home to their families, thank god no children on that street were hurt, thank god no one in his family was hurt (which is why they called 911 in the first place)
GREAT RESTRAINT BY FCSO FOR TRYING NON-LEATHAL FIRST, and then, unfortunatly doing what they were forced to do. THANK YOU FSCO FOR ALL YOU DO FOR US!!
Geezer says
I know a lady who knows Mary Turner. This is a tough luck family that has endured more than their fair share of family tragedy. Troy, I understand served his country, and rather than wait for a check, he worked at fast food places.
I have seen traffic stops, and ambulance calls where many squad cars amass and you see 5 or 6 or more deputies. plus the original responders! Why not here? After the Taser–where was the pepper spray and other non-lethal options????? Where was the trained negotiator?
I wonder why in this situation only 2 ill-prepared deputies (and the sergeant) responded to a situation where SWAT and better trained officers were clearly needed. There’s no shortage of personnel here.
This was a botched police response that was rushed.
Poor Miss Turner needs to bury her beloved Troy now.
It’s a damned senseless shame.
Sad says
I agree with you 100% Geezer. The unfortunate person that was gunned down was in the garage. He had nowhere to escape. He and the situation were contained. It seems like the cops made a tremendous leap in escalation procedures – from verbal orders to deadly force – several shots at that! A person lost his life here, an elderly grandmother lost her grandson! So yes, they do have the right to a full and impartial investigation. And we, the citizens of Palm Coast have every right, and even duty to voice our opinions regarding this tragedy that could have possibly been avoided if the cops had shown more restraint.
ol' sarge says
good idea, geezer…spray pepper spray in an enclosed area. Maybe they should have suggested everybody calm down and wait for them to devise a more polite plan to deal with the guy holding the weapon and threatening to kill them. Maybe they should have brought over come cake and ice cream and had a little hot tea social with him. The neighbors were worried, the kids in the neighborhood were scared, it was not the first time this kid had problems, and he was kneeling in the street with a machete and a bible at one point. Nobody wins obviously, but you would be singing a different tune if he had hacked up a kid or managed to hit a deputy.
Sad- your implication that this had anything to do with race is ridiculous. I know both of these deputies, and if you knew them, you would be embarrassed…
w.ryan says
Isn’t pepper spray a directional streamed liquid weapon ol’sarge not a gas. Can’t it be deployed in this space? We don’t have to worry about which way the wind blows do we? Aside from that there is no doubt police have a tough job. Sh#t happens at the drop of a dime with police work. At that point it’s best to be judged than carried to be buried. Twelve or six, But what about the victim who is unable to make a sound mentally stable decision? I don’t know the other Officers. The responding Sgt is a gentleman with a lot of experience and an asset to the community. Their bravery is not in question but we have a death and that is always subject to questions so stop this Monday morning QB label beat down.
Geezer says
W.Ryan:
I don’t even respond to these folks. They just want to be contrary.
Black is white, white is black.
Your rebuttal is excellent–you are very reasonable and open-minded, as in all your previous posts.
Dadgum says
There are, as usual, more unanswered questions that need to be looked at here by an independent, professional, and knowledgeable committee for these types of closed quarter situations as well as input from mental health professionals.
I do feel there was a rush to judgement to which certain actions should have been taken before having to take this veterans life. Many of our veterans are coming back to this country only to be killed by our police, some, I realize, are unavoidable. It may or may not have been isolated and diffused but we must be able to do a better job to save these poor souls.
There were other options available such as bean bags, padded protective gear. deploying a net which immobilizes the individual (they do have them) specially trained deputies by mental health experts in the field for these types of encounters which includes: what to do; how to communicate with such an individual if possible; what actions and non actions deputies should take in these types of encounters; removing family members; isolating the individual; a plan of action from a person trained in these encounters at the scene and clearly communicated to the team involved; sometimes the area or scene of the confrontation is not well lighted and a plan of action must be established. Proper training by responding professionals trained for different scenarios based on previous cases (and there are plenty for review) is the key for these types of situations.
First responders should be specially selected for these encounters if possible, which I realize is often temporal, with the idea that it may be a fellow family member they are coming to help.
Tired says
Didn’t we have a similar situation occur in the P section within the last year or two? I agree that we can’t play Monday Morning Quarterback here. If you weren’t afraid of him, why call 911? If you dont’ want trouble, why take illegal drugs? Ultimately, the root of the problem traces back to poor choices and NOT on the part of the deputies. I do think it’s time to evaluate the mental health crises. I don’t think it’s possible for our deputies to be intricately trained in mental health AND all of their other responsibilities. If we had a seperate entity to handle these calls that specialized in the field perhaps is an approach to consider? Regardless, I’m sorry for this families loss.
Chris says
I so glad to see all of the Monday Morning Quarterbacking…. The deputies did their job and as they were trained… We could be reading in the news about a deputy killed by machete welding man.
But everyone knows better than the law enforcement officers sworn to protect public. I must note that sworn to protect doesn’t mean being killed or injured by a person swinging a machete.
To all of those who are so quick to pass judgement, go to the academy, get employed by an agency and walk in their shoes…
Sea dog says
If some one is heading toward me with a machete I am going to shoot him and I expect the police to do the same. Tomorrow he may have been heading to some grade school with the machete.
Truth says
@sad
Too bad blacks aren’t the minority. Please don’t make this into racial thing. I knew Troy I worked with him he was A kind harmless man. Also he was mixed not black. But if a officer tells you to stand down you listen because in all reality they want to go home at the end of the day to their families.
ANONYMOUSAY says
I’ve known Larry Jones for over 20 years He’s a good cop and been one for a long time. It’s ironic that he was the Supervisor on the scene initiating the investigation and did not fire his weapon, but that the other two younger and less experienced Deputies both employed a possible lethal and lethal means of disabling and killing Mr. Gorden. Sounds almost as bad as “No don’t kill yourself yet, I want to do it for you”. If Mr. Gordon was in-fact alone in that garage no blockade or barrier should have been removed until that whole area was contained inside and out. Not GI JOE style. Drug addicts go to jail but stay sick and delusional people get shot killed, this is how society deals with the broken.
Sad says
Even if one were to believe what was written in the police report, I can clearly see a rush to extreme violence and unnecessary deadly force. The police report clearly states the victim was barricaded in the garage. He did not have a hostage. There was no reason to believe that he had firearms or explosives. The police should have left the garage and secured the area. But it seems they were much too aggressive and hasty to use deadly and fatal force. I get this impression just reading excerpts of the police report. And seeing that there were absolutely no witnesses to the shooting other than the police, it is possible the details were inaccurate. I hate to break it to you folks, but this wouldn’t be the first time a police report was inaccurate and it won’t be the last. I’m not trying to make this into a racial thing, but you can’t ignore the fact that the dead person was black. Fair minded people know the criminal justice system is disproportionately stacked against minorities. That’s just a fact. I don’t know the deputy who did the shooting but I would be willing to bet he is white and probably relatively young – mid-twenties to thirty. Can’t ignore those possibilities, a person lost his life here!
Jim Neuenfeldt says
I will be glad when they take police officers guns and nightsticks away for good!
We can replace the weapons with magic fairy wands, which will allow them (the Police) to then do societies bidding by waving the magic wand and turning sick and deranged people into law abiding, job holding, and tax paying members of the community!
Oh and instead of Patrol cars… We can furnish them with Pumpkins that become carriages and Glass slippers!
Shark says
Three officers and only one with a stun gun??????It’s obvious they need more training.
Sad says
Mr. Manfre, I was an active supporter of you in your recent elction. I have met you and your family many times and I personally think all of you are decent, caring and smart people. I don’t want to besmirch the outgoing administration, and I have met them many times too. While I don’t harbor any personal ill will towards them, I am very glad to see them go because the behavior of the rank and file is very reflective of he top person’s ethics and conduct. I choose to be anonymous because nobody in their right mind wants to pick a fight with city hall, or in this case, with the police department. My humble advice to you Mr. Manfre is to get ahead of this incident immediately. The more I read about this and speak with various people, the more convinced I am the police might have been too hasty in their decision to use deadly and fatal force. This incident has the potential of blowing up in Palm Coast’s face. If you don’t act promptly in making sure there is a full, immediate, vigorous, impartial and transparent investigation, this case has the potential of tainting your administration! If the police acted appropriately and completely in line with published procedures, they will be cleared, and perhaps the rules should be revisited. But if there were inappropriate actions or worse, an attempted cover-up, those responsible should be held accountable.
RNYPD says
In your latest post you once again cast judgement on the Professionals that actually responded to this incident and documented it in a detailed report. You openly plead with Sheriff Elect Manfre to open an investigation on the incident. Are you under the impression that he will have a whole new Police force to do that investigation? No he will not if that is your assumption. There is as always a police shooting investigation currently underway which is being conducted by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. I believe a person who is the neighbor of the victim has pointed that out on several occassions now.
Ken Dodge says
This country needs a national bible-control policy. It’s just crazy that anyone can go out and buy as many bibles as they want.
In Europe, they don’t have as many bibles and you hardly ever see this stuff happening!
I know what people will say: “The Constitution gives is the right to carry bibles”, but I doubt the founding fathers could predict the future of automated (kindle) bibles! This is getting out of hand!
Local Parent says
In an effort to prevent an further violence in this world I propose a ban on people with mental illness. Anyone with a mental illness should be locked up indefintely. This would prevent any further mental health “situations”.
RNYPD says
I am sure the parents of the children in Newtown Ct would agree. Someone should have gone there with a net and salvaged that young mans life.
friend of troy says
i grew up with Troy.. I havent been in touch for quite some time before this but what i did know about troy was he was a man of honor. he Joined the Marine Corps and tried to get me too also (I followed suit later). outside looking in and trying to remain as neutral as possible. I would have secured a perimiter and called for backup. Troy i wish i could have been a better friend in the end i wish i knew what put you in this place.
-JS
Johnny says
Seems to me the police could have and should have called for backup when Troy barricaded himself.
How many times was Troy actually shot and where did the first shot go?
I truly feel the police should have called for backup. The worst thing is the poor heartbroken Grandmother who raised the boy from 7 years old has to deal with the pain and being old and alone.
I hope God blesses her.