JACKSONVILLE, Fla – A burglary suspect shot by police Wednesday morning is now behind bars in the Duval County jail.
Officers were called to the Gate Liquors Lounge on Lem Turner Road after an alarm went off about 2:25 a.m. Wednesday, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. Police said a keyholder to the business arrived shortly after the alarm went off and came face to face with an armed, masked man.
By the time officers responded, police said 27-year-old Michael Kevin Hollis (pictured) was outside, holding two assault rifles.
JSO later said Hollis did not enter the business with the assault rifles. They said he got into the business, found the rifles inside, and apparently decided to take them.
According to JSO, the officer who responded first to the scene had no choice but to shoot Hollis after Hollis refused to drop the rifles.
"The officer, who was out of his car at that time, gave repeated verbal attempts for the suspect to stop, put the guns down and get on the ground," JSO Director Tom Hackney said. "That subject refused to comply."
Hackney said the officer, whose name has not been released, fired his service weapon eight times at Hollis, who was hit once in the leg. Two bullets actually hit the guns Hollis had slung over his body.
Hollis was taken to UF Health with a non-life-threatening injury to his leg. He was arrested and is currently not eligible for bond. He is charged with possession of a weapon by a convicted felon, possession of marijuana, resisting an officer without violence, armed burglary, possession of a weapon or ammunition by a convicted felon, and other charges.
Police did not say if Hollis had ever been a patron at the business.
News4Jax crime and safety Gil Smith said if a burglar alarm goes off at a business, employees should always wait for police before entering.
"They're trained to go in and search the building and eliminate as much risk as possible," Smith said. "It's still a danger to the keyholder to go in. He was lucky this time, because he was face-to-face with the suspect."
This is the third time in the last two days that first responders in Jacksonville have been the targets of violence. Tuesday morning, a JSO officer was shot at while responding to a call of abandoned cars in a yard. Tuesday night, firefighters at JFRD station 28 on the Southside were shot at while fueling their truck.
"These men and women in Public Safety leave their families to come out and do a job that they are hired to do by the citizens of Jacksonville," Hackney said. "It is a very dangerous job in and of itself. When they are confronted with these extra dangers like this, it highlights the sacrifice that these men and women make to perform their duties for the citizens of Jacksonville to keep them safe."
Hackney said that the officer has been placed on paid administrated leave, which is standard protocol in these situations.