Images via YouTube/PoliceActivity and Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office
In November 2023, a police officer in Okaloosa County, Florida got in a heated shootout with an acorn, endangering the life of a detained man who was handcuffed in the car.
In a video that has gone viral on social media this week both for its absurdity and terrifying implications, Deputy Jesse Hernandez hears an acorn drop onto his car. In response, he dramatically rolls on the ground while repeatedly shouting “shots fired!” and unloading his sidearm into the vehicle, shattering its back window.
At the time, a handcuffed man named Marquis Jackson was inside the vehicle. Jackson is a Black Florida resident who had been detained by Hernandez and his partner, Sergeant Beth Roberts, after being accused of stealing a car and sending threatening messages to his girlfriend. One of the messages included what police said was an image of a pistol silencer.
After rolling on the ground, Hernandez shouted “I’m hit!”—he had not been hit—and told Roberts that shots were coming from inside the car. Roberts also unloaded her firearm at the vehicle as Jackson lay in the backseat.
The incident is a stunning example of police incompetence and law enforcement’s willingness to use deadly force against the public. Lest it simply become fodder for social media jokes, it’s worth looking at how the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office handled the issue and the effect it had on Jackson, who said he was severely psychologically impacted and “damaged for life.”
Hernandez resigned while under investigation for his handling of the incident on December 4, according to a February 9 press release from Sheriff Eric Aden. A document laying out the investigation’s findings would be comical if the stakes weren’t so high. It describes Hernandez falling over, rolling on the ground for several seconds, falling over again while struggling to stand up and breaking his sunglasses, sending a piece flying into the frame. He shouted “shots fired” four times, said the shots were coming from the car, and claimed he was “hit.” His partner, who also unloaded into the car, seemed confused, at one point simply asking him, “What?” The sound of an acorn hitting the car is barely audible before the shooting begins.
During the investigation, Hernandez was initially adamant that shots had been fired. He said that he did not have prior law enforcement experience but that he trained at West Point and served as an infantry and special forces officer for a decade, which included two rotations in Afghanistan. He said that he never faced combat because he was an officer. Eventually, investigators showed him frame-by-frame footage of an acorn hitting the car. “Acorn?” Hernandez asked. “Acorn,” the investigator responded.
Screengrab via Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office
Ultimately, investigators concluded that Hernandez’s use of force was not justified because the only external stimulus he had was the sound of an acorn. However, his partner was exonerated. And in a statement on Hernandez’ resignation, Sheriff Aden still defended Hernandez as genuinely fearing for his life—again, over the sound of an acorn.
“We are very thankful Mr. Jackson wasn’t injured and we have no reason to think former Deputy Hernandez acted with any malice,” Aden said. “Though his actions were ultimately not warranted, we do believe he felt his life was in immediate peril and his response was based off the totality of circumstances surrounding this fear. Just as we have an obligation to protect our officers so they can go home safely to their families, law enforcement has the same obligation to any citizen being investigated for a crime.”
The incident had a significant effect on Jackson, the man who was inside the car as the officers unloaded their pistols at nothing. While he was not injured, he said in a post on Facebook last week that he is “not OK” and “damaged for life.”
“All I could do was lean over and play dead to prevent getting shot in the head,” he wrote. “I was scared to death and I knew all I could depend on was God! I ignored everything and prayed! Windows were shattering on me the whole time as bullets continued flying across me. I was blessed not to get hit by any bullets or get hurt physically but mentally, I’m not ok. I haven’t been the same since and I don’t think this feeling I have will ever change. I truly believe I’m damaged for life!”
In his statement, Sheriff Aden said that the department was “limited in further response due to pending litigation.” Motherboard could not find court records related to the incident online and reached out to the Okaloosa County Courthouse, which confirmed it did not have any recent records related to either party. Motherboard reached out to the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office for clarification but has not received a response.
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