CLEARWATER, Fla. – Detectives with the Pinellas County Use of Deadly Force Investigative Task Force are investigating a deputy-involved shooting that occurred Monday evening.
Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office deputies were called to a home on Ella Place at 6:44 p.m. by a woman who said her adult son was armed with a knife and threatening to harm himself. He also told her he wanted to die by suicide by cop.
When deputies arrived on the scene, the man was in the garage of the home, armed with a knife and acting erratic.
According to investigators, for 70 minutes, they tried to talk the man into putting the knife down but he would not comply.
At one point, he exited the garage into the side yard, still armed with the knife.
At that time, deputies fired less-lethal bean bags, but those had little effect on him. He then ran directly to the backyard toward two deputies, still holding the knife. He refused commands to drop the knife, and deputies were in fear for their lives.
One deputy fired one shot, grazing the man in the arm. He was treated and released from a local hospital and then booked into the Pinellas County Jail.
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The suspect has been identified as Christopher Ryan Kelly, 38.
Deputies say Kelly was charged with two counts of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer and one count of resisting arrest without violence. He has a lengthy history of mental health issues, along with drug and alcohol use.
The deputy who fired her weapon was Nicole Jones. She has been with the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office since January 2021. She is on non-disciplinary relief of duty, which is standard in such cases.
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