JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Jacksonville police on Wednesday released new information and evidence relating to the police-involved shooting that left a 22-year-old woman dead.
Latoya Grier was shot multiple times by Officer C. L Tremaroli when a traffic stop ended in a gun battle between the two.
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"After he captured the suspect, approximately 750 to 1,000 yards from the original stop, there was a very brief struggle. Officer Tremaroli then had the female driver by one arm as he escorted her back toward the original stop. At that point, the female came out from somewhere on her clothing with a firearm and shoots twice at Officer Tremaroli from a very close proximity," Chief Rick Graham shortly after the incident took place on Tuesday. "One of the shots came close enough to Officer Tremaroli that he thought he had actually been shot and put it out on the radio that he'd been shot. The second shot actually struck the Taser on his duty belt."
Tremaroli returned fire, killing Grier.
During a Wednesday morning news conference, police revealed that Grier was no stranger to the law, saying she was entrenched in the drug business.
Investigators said they recovered several different types of drugs that were with Grier, including Ecstasy, cocaine and marijuana.
When asked if Tremaroli followed protocol in the incident, Graham replied, "It will be thoroughly investigated. So, I don?t want to stand up here and say that everything appears to be great and wonderful because that would be inappropriate. It needs to go through the process, and let the system determine whether it's justified. However, I will say we've had way too many of these in the last couple of years -- they've all been justified. That's a ruling that the state attorney makes, not us."
He also said it is unusual for a woman to be involved in police-involved shootings.
Tremaroli on Wednesday was at home recovering from minor injuries related to the shooting. The five-year JSO veteran is on paid administrative leave, which is standard procedure when an officer is involved in a shooting.