STATE ATTORNEY Fourth Judicial Circuit of Florida ANGELA B.COREY 311 West Monroe Street STATE ATTORNEY Jacksonville, Florida 32202 Tel: (904) 255-2500 Fax: (904)255-3009 STATE ATTORNEY REVIEW JUSTIFIABLE USE OF DEADLY FORCE BY A LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER Florida Statute 776 and Florida Statute 782.02 Date of shooting: May 12, 2015 S.A. Number: 15-29619 In re investigation of the death or injury to: Name: D'Angelo Reyes StaIIworth D.O. B.: 10/28/86 SUMMARY OF THE FACTS: 1. On the morning of Tuesday, May 12, 2015, Deputy S. Srozinski, a 25-year-veteran with the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office (JSO), and Deputy T. Blum, a 24-year-veteran with JSO, shot and killed D'Angelo Stallworth at the Planter's Walk Apartments, located at 7350 Blanding Boulevard, Jacksonville, Florida. This is the first officer-involved shooting for both Deputy Srozinski and Deputy Blum. For the reasons outlined below, the State Attorney's Office has concluded that Deputy Srozinski and Deputy Blum were justified in the use of deadly force against Stallworth. 2. At approximately 10:00 a.m. on May 12, 2015, Deputies Srozinski and Blum were assisting two Planter's Walk Apartment employees, Jamie Pena and Javier Rosa, with an eviction inspection. Deputies Srozinski and Blum were assigned to JSO's "Civil Unit". Both deputies were wearing standard, navy blue JSO uniforms, with the JSO shield on the left chest and both shoulders. The deputies entered apartment 130, a second-story apartment, to ensure that no one was inside the apartment before Ms. Pena and Mr. Rosa entered. After the deputies found that no one was inside the apartment, Ms. Pena and Mr. Rosa joined the deputies inside the apartment. 3. While all four were inside apartment 130, Deputy Srozinski noticed a man, later identified as Stallworth, on the rear porch of apartment 130. Stallworth was walking away from the utility closet located just behind apartment 130. Stallworth's presence was of concern to the deputies because no one was supposed to be present in apartment 130. When Deputy Srozinski exited the sliding-glass door to the porch area, Stallworth reappeared carrying a children's bicycle. Stallworth walked back to the utility closet behind apartment 130 and set the bike down. Stallworth then picked up a blanket 15SA29619 1 of 7 Rev. 07/1/14
that was lying on the floor of the utility closet. When Stallworth lifted the blanket a black and silver semi-automatic pistol could be seen lying on the floor of the closet. Deputy Srozinski immediately asked Stallworth if the gun belonged to him. Stallworth said "no", but then Stallworth quickly grabbed the gun. Startled by Stallworth's sudden actions, Deputy Srozinski immediately grabbed Stallworth's arm with one hand and the gun with the other, attempting to gain control of the gun. Stallworth refused to release the gun and instead struggled with Deputy Srozinski over control of the gun. At one point in the struggle Stallworth forcefully pushed the barrel of what appeared to be a loaded semiautomatic firearm directly into Deputy Srozinski's chest. 4. During the struggle for the gun, Deputy Srozinski alerted Deputy Blum of the situation by yelling the word, "Gun!" As Deputy Blum made his way to the porch he could see Stallworth pressing the gun into Deputy Srozinski's chest. At that point, both deputies feared for their lives and the lives of the two civilian maintenance workers who were standing nearby. When Deputy Blum got to the porch, Stallworth ripped the gun from Deputy Srozinski's grasp and broke free from Deputy Srozinski. Stallworth then ran down the staircase that led from the porch to the ground behind the apartment. Both deputies believed Stallworth still had possession of the firearm as he ran down the stairs. As Stallworth continued running down the stairs, Deputy Srozinski repeatedly yelled, "Stop!" and both deputies drew their JSO-issued firearms. Stallworth refused Deputy Srozinski's lawful command and continued running down the stairs. When Stallworth got to the bottom of the staircase he turned to run in a direction that took him in front of the two deputies. While doing so, Stallworth turned and looked up at the two deputies. When Stallworth turned in their direction, both deputies feared for their lives and for the lives of the two maintenance workers who were behind them. Both deputies fired their pistols at Stallworth. Stallworth continued running for a short distance and then fell to the ground. 5. When Stallworth fell to the ground, Deputy Srozinski immediately went to check on Stallworth. Upon seeing Stallworth's condition, Deputy Srozinski called for rescue from his shoulder-mounted radio. Rescue responded to the scene, but Stallworth was pronounced dead at the scene. 6. Stallworth's pistol, a 9mm Smith & Wesson, was located on the porch of apartment 130. The magazine to Stallworth's gun was found on the ground at the bottom of the stairwell. The magazine to Stallworth's gun contained 16 live 9mm rounds. Stallworth's 9mm pistol is pictured below. An examination of the deputy's firearms revealed that Deputy Srozinski fired his pistol four times and Deputy Blum fired two times. 15SA29619 2 of 7 Rev. 07/1/14
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7. Two DNA labs tested evidence collected in connection with this case. DNA Labs International (DLI) examined Stallworth's pistol and the magazine to the pistol. DLI's DNA analysis revealed the following: a DNA sample from pistol's grip, trigger and slide yielded a mixture of DNA. Stallworth was excluded as a possible contributor to the major DNA profile. A DNA sample from pistol's front and rear sites yielded a mixture of DNA. The DNA mixture was inconclusive for comparison purposes. The DNA analysis from the magazine also yielded a mixture of DNA. The major profile of the DNA mixture from the magazine matched Stallworth. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) examined swabs collected from Stallworth's pistol, the magazine to the pistol and the 16 live rounds from the magazine. FDLE's DNA analysis revealed the following: the swab collected from the magazine and live rounds yielded no DNA. The swab from Stallworth's pistol yielded a mixture of DNA. One of the contributors to the DNA mixture was determined to be one of the JSO crime scene detectives that processed the scene. Deputy Srozinski could not be included nor excluded as a possible contributor to the DNA mixture collected from the pistol. Stallworth was excluded as a possible contributor to the DNA mixture collected from the pistol. 8. Inside the blanket that Stallworth lifted in the closet of apartment 130 were two glass jars of marijuana. One jar contained 44 grams of marijuana and the other, a larger jar, contained 82 grams of marijuana. A DNA examination (by FDLE) of samples taken from the two jars revealed that Stallworth's DNA was found on the larger jar of marijuana. The swab from the smaller jar of marijuana contained a mixture of DNA, but the amount of DNA was insufficient to determine whether or not Stallworth was a contributor to that DNA. The two jars of marijuana and blanket are pictured below. 15SA29619 4 of 7 Rev. 07/1/14
9. Ms. Pena and Mr. Rosa were interviewed the day of the shooting and provided sworn statements. Both Ms. Pena and Mr. Rosa were standing on or near the porch to apartment 130 when they saw Stallworth standing at the utility closet to apartment 130 with a small bicycle in his hands. Both Ms. Pena and Mr. Rosa heard Deputy Srozinski ask Stallworth if the gun on the ground belonged to him. According to Ms. Pena and Mr. Rosa, Stallworth did not respond to Deputy Srozinski's question, but instead Stallworth grabbed the gun. When Stallworth grabbed the gun, Deputy Srozinski immediately grabbed Stallworth and began struggling with him for control of the gun. Both Ms. Pena and Mr. Rosa saw the gun waiving around as Deputy Srozinski and Stallworth struggled for it. Ms. Pena and Mr. Rosa heard Deputy Srozinski yell "Stop!" two times after Stallworth broke free and ran down the stairs. Both Ms. Pena and Mr. Rosa saw Deputy Blum come onto the porch as Stallworth broke away from Deputy Srozinski and ran down the stairs. Because of where they were standing, neither Ms. Pena nor Mr. Rosa could see which way Stallworth was facing when he was shot. Mr. Rosa was the only person who was aware that Stallworth's gun had fallen on to the porch during the struggle. lo.stallworth's girlfriend Latrell Johnson lives in apartment 132, which is adjacent to apartment 130. Ms. Johnson is the only adult listed on the lease for apartment 132. The lease provides that guests are not permitted to stay in the apartment for more than seven days (without prior written consent) over the term of the year-long lease. Ms. Johnson was interviewed at the scene and provided a sworn statement. Ms. Johnson and Stallworth have a three-year-old daughter in common. Ms. Johnson stated that Stallworth does not live with her, but that he did spend the night with her at apartment 132 the night before the shooting. Ms. Johnson stated that she was in her master bedroom, which is in the front of the apartment, when she heard two gunshots coming from the back of the apartment. Ms. Johnson said she did not hear anything before the gunshots. When she heard the first two gunshots, Ms. Johnson said she ran to the back door of her apartment and looked out her closed, sliding-glass door. Ms. Johnson said she saw two uniformed JSO deputies standing on the porch of apartment 130, shooting in a downward direction. Ms. Johnson said that because of her position inside her apartment, she could not see at whom or at what the deputies were shooting. Ms. Johnson stated that after the shooting, she ran to the bottom of the stairwell that her apartment shares with apartment 130. Ms. Johnson said she doesn't believe she touched or moved anything when she ran down the stairs. Ms. Johnson stated she was not aware of Stallworth using the utility closet to apartment 130 for any purpose, and she was unaware that Stallworth possessed any firearms. However, Ms. Johnson stated she was aware that Stallworth used marijuana. A sworn statement was taken from another person who claimed to have seen the shooting, but that person's account was completely unsupported by the physical and testimonial evidence. 11. The autopsy of Stallworth revealed he had been shot three times. From the top of Stallworth's body to the bottom, the gunshot wounds were as follows: one shot entered Stallworth's body just below his right shoulder, posteriorly. The bullet had a slight upward and back-to-front trajectory and traveled from Stallworth's right side to his left side. Another bullet entered Stallworth's body in the back of his right leg. The bullet had 15SA29619 5 of 7 Rev. 07/1/14
an upward trajectory as it passed through his leg from back to front. Another bullet entered the front of Stallworth's left leg. This bullet's path is front to back and downward. LEGAL ANALYSIS: 1. Florida Statute 776.012 provides, in part, that a person is justified in the use of deadly force and does not have a duty to retreat if that person reasonably believes that such force is necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm to himself or another, or to prevent the imminent commission of a forcible felony. Additionally, Florida Statute 782.02 provides in part, that the use of deadly force is justifiable when a person is resisting any attempt to murder such person or to commit any felony upon him or her. 2. Florida Statute 776.05 provides, in part, that a law enforcement officer is justified in the use of any force which he or she reasonably believes is necessary to defend himself or herself or another from bodily harm while making an arrest. 3. At the time Deputies Srozinski and Blum discharged their firearms: CONCLUSION: (1) Stallworth ignored Deputy Srozinski's question about the semiautomatic pistol on the floor of the utility closet; (2) Stallworth grabbed the pistol; (3) Stallworth fought Deputy Srozinski, a uniformed law enforcement officer, for control of the pistol; (4) Stallworth pushed the barrel of the firearm into Deputy Srozinski's chest; (5) Stallworth fled from Deputy Srozinski; (6) Stallworth refused Deputy Srozinski's lawful command to stop; (7) Stallworth turned toward Deputies Srozinski and Blum while fleeing from them. THEREFORE, it is the opinion of the undersigned Assistant State Attorney that the use of deadly force in this case by Deputies Srozinski and Slum was justifiable pursuant to Florida Statutes, Chapters 776 and 78^0^, ^he Florida Standarpf/Jury Instructions and applicable case law. JoW. Guy i/ As^Tstant State Attorney Dijfector-Homicide Major Crinr^ Unit I have reviewed the findings presented and concur in the_opiniqq that the use of force in this case was justifiable. ^.^ /v_) / -^ c^c\^cu^)^w Angela^ Corey ^ State Attorney 15SA29619 6 of 7 Rev. 07/1/14
CRIMINAL HISTORY OF DEANGELO REYES STALLWORTH CRIMINAL HISTORY 12/29/2010: Battery (Domestic): WHA; 1 day DCJ NOTIFICATION OF INVOLVED PARTIES Police Notification: $ Name/ID/Department: Deputy S. Srozinski, 7196 JSO; T. Blum, 7148, JSO $ Contact Method: via FOP attorney, Phil Vogelsang $ Date/Time: September 4, 2015 Investigating Agency Notification: $ Name/ID/Department: Det. Glenn Warkentien, 7461 JSO $ Contact Method: in person $ Date/Time: September 3, 2015 Deceased-Next of Kin Notification: $ Person=s Name: Latrell Johnson (mother of Stallworth s child), Yashika Johnson (mother of Stallworth s other children) $ Contact Method: in person with family attorney Eric Block $ Date/Time: September 4, 2015 15SA29619 7 of 7 Rev. 07/1/14