JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Jacksonville police officer who survived a brutal on-duty beating says the hardest part of recovery wasn’t only physical — it was learning how to let go of the anger.
Officer Jennifer Scott sat down with me to explain why she chose to forgive the man who attacked her — and why she told him so in court last week, during his sentencing hearing.
It was the first time she had faced Joseph Merrill since the 2023 attack outside a Walmart on Philips Highway that left her with a broken jaw and and a traumatic brain injury.
‘Today, I choose to forgive’
During the hearing, Scott, whose last name was Johnson at the time of the attack, read a victim impact statement that stunned many in the courtroom:
“Today, I choose to forgive the defendant because I refuse to let my life be defined by anger. Instead, I choose healing, resilience, and moving forward in peace,” Scott said.
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Scott told me that she’d felt a “tug” toward forgiveness for a long time — and that she needed it in order to heal.
“I didn’t want to walk out of that courtroom with any more anger, resentment, any bad feelings,” Scott said. “I wanted to move forward in life without the anger.”
Scott said standing at the podium and making eye contact with Merrill was something she hadn’t been able to do in the three years since the attack — and that finally speaking directly to him felt like reclaiming her voice.
“It felt good,” she said. “To look at him in the eyes and say, ‘Look, I forgive you… I choose forgiveness.’ I will never forget the look that was on his face.”
Scott said Merrill didn’t stop looking at her as she spoke — and that it did not feel like an attempt to intimidate her. Instead, she said, she hopes her words reached him.
“I truly felt like maybe for just a split second even, that he was maybe sorry for what he did,” she said.
Why she stopped to watch him leave
After Scott finished speaking, court was adjourned. But she said there was one more moment she wanted to see before walking back over to her family.
As Merrill was led away in handcuffs, Scott stopped, turned around, and watched Merrill being taken out of the courtroom. She told me it was intentional — and emotional.
“I just remember I had that moment by myself standing there in that courtroom, knowing that I was watching him walk away for the very last time,” Scott said. “Knowing I will never see you again for the rest of my life… I just wanted to watch him walk out.”
Merrill was sentenced to 28 years in prison after pleading guilty May 13 to aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer, carrying a concealed weapon by a convicted felon, resisting an officer with violence, depriving an officer of means of protection or communication, and felony petty theft.
Scott said that moment, watching Merrill leave the courtroom, was the moment she truly released what she’d been carrying.
“It was in that moment where I just really released everything and that was when I forgave him, right then and there,” Scott said.
Her husband, Roy Scott, was in the courtroom too — watching as Jennifer spoke to the man who nearly killed her three years ago.
He said her strength was hard to put into words.
“Our God, He forgives, and we’re forgiven,” Roy Scott said. “I think when you are, it’s a little bit easier to forgive others when they’ve wronged you. I think that’s the motivation behind Jennifer… and the strength that she showed that day.”
How their children are coping
But even after sentencing, the impact on the Scotts’ family continues — especially for their children. Officer Scott said their kids still ask questions that show the fear hasn’t fully gone away.
“When we’re driving, and we’re near the jail… the kids will say, ‘Is he still in there? Is the bad guy still in there?’” she said.
Scott said she reassures them that Merrill is not getting out anytime soon.
“Yeah, he’s in there. He’s not getting out. And he’s not going anywhere,” she said. “28 years.”
A new purpose
Officer Scott remains with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office — and says she’s found a new purpose after everything she’s endured.
She recently moved into a new position focused on health and wellness, where she hopes to help others in law enforcement who are struggling.
“For a while there… I felt like I lost purpose,” Scott said. “You lose a sense of your identity.”
But she said the new assignment feels like the right fit — and a chance to use her experience to support others.
“I have found my purpose, and that is to help my… brothers and sisters at the agency,” she said. “If you’re struggling, going through a hard time… I’m here for you… It’s all about changing the stigma… knowing that it’s OK to say, ‘Hey, I need help.’”
Scott said she will always remember the attack — but she refuses to allow it to define the rest of her life.
Violent assault
On Feb. 23, 2023, Officer Scott responded to a shoplifting call at the Walmart on Philips Highway.
That’s where she first encountered Merrill.
Scott said that when she approached Merrill in the parking lot about the shoplifting report, he suddenly punched her in the mouth, knocking her to the ground.
At that moment, JSO Sgt. Steven Rudlaff happened to be driving by the business on his way to work and saw the sucker punch.
And what came next.
“I was driving this way, and I looked over, I was like, ‘Oh, she’s got somebody stopped.’ Next (thing) I know, he punches her in the face. She falls down, and he’s punching her,” Rudlaff said previously.
Rudlaff saw Merrill jump on top of Scott on the ground and continue to pummel her. The sheriff later said Merrill had also tossed Scott’s radio away from her during the beating -- making it impossible for her to call for help.
Other officers who responded after Rudlaff caught the aftermath on their body cameras.
“I was comin’ this way,” Rudlaff says while pointing on the body cam. “I saw him start punching. I f***ing pulled across the median and left my car in the middle of the road!”
Merrill ran when he saw Rudlaff, but was taken into custody after a foot chase.
Sheriff T.K. Waters said Rudlaff’s intervention is credited with saving Scott’s life because, according to prosecutors, Merrill “was on top of the police officer, bashing her head in.”
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The force of the blows actually shifted Scott’s bottom teeth into two rows, although her adrenaline was so high that at first, she didn’t realize the extent of the damage to her mouth.
That damage is still being repaired three years later, Scott explained during the sentencing hearing.
“I continue to undergo surgeries and medical treatments with no end in sight,” she said. “This was not an injury from which I could simply recover and move on.”
Watch our full interview
Officer Scott currently wears braces on her teeth – a far cry from having her jaw wired shut for three months soon after the attack.
Scott details the painful physical recovery she’s endured over the last three years, and what doctors say are her next steps.
You can watch our full interview in the video player at the top of this article.