Florida deputy and police K9 shot by a man fleeing a traffic stop

A Pinellas County deputy and St. Petersburg Police Department K9 officer were shot early Friday morning by a man fleeing a traffic stop, according to the St. Petersburg Police Department.

The man, 23-year-old Elijah Johnson, then turned the gun on himself, police said.

Johnson was stopped just before 2 a.m. by a deputy with the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office Joint Violent Crimes Task Force near Third Avenue S and 26th Street S in the Historic Kenwood area of St. Petersburg, police said. Johnson stopped, then fled the scene.

Johnson was stopped just before 2 a.m. by a deputy with the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office Joint Violent Crimes Task Force near Third Avenue S and 30th Street in the Historic Kenwood area of St. Petersburg, police said.

Johnson stopped, then fled the scene. The Sheriff’s Office said deputies did not pursue, but deployed a flight unit.

St. Petersburg police officer Greg Shone and his K9 partner Titan found the car abandoned a few blocks away, at Third Avenue S and 26th Street, and began tracking the area.

Johnson, who had fled on foot, shot Titan, then fled again. Police said Johnson then shot Sheriff’s Office Sgt. David Stang, who was searching the area in an unmarked vehicle near the intersection of Third Avenue S and 27th Street.

Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said it appears Stang was caught by surprise. He didn’t reach for his gun or get on the radio, Gualtieri said.

“Whether the bad guy charged the car and shot or whether he shot at a distance, that’s something the investigation will have to reveal,” Gualtieri said in a news conference from the scene. “I wouldn’t go as far as to say it was an ambush, but it was that type of a situation. It appears he was caught by surprise.”

Johnson was later found dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound near Third Avenue S and 26th Street, police said.

Stang was shot twice, including once in the shoulder. He is listed in stable condition at Bayfront Health St. Petersburg, police said. Titan, the K9 unit, underwent surgery and is listed in stable condition.

“These are always the calls you dread,” Gualtieri said. “The only thing that’d be worse is if he was in worse shape. Thank goodness Sgt. Stang is alive and it looks like he’s going to be okay.” It appears no deputy or officer fired a weapon, police said, and it is unclear why Johnson was pulled over.

State records show Johnson has been arrested at least 15 times, dating to a theft charge when he was 12. He was arrested in March 2015 for fleeing and eluding a police officer and sentenced to up to 180 days in jail. He was sentenced to 20 months in state prison in July 2016 following an arrest on charges of possession of synthetic marijuana and cocaine.

In 2016, he was arrested in connection with an incident related to celebratory gunfire.

Other charges against Taylor have included auto theft, armed robbery, and burglary. He was ordered in 2017 to register under Florida’s Career Offender’s Act.

Most recently, Taylor was arrested on a charge of possession of ecstasy and marijuana and released Feb. 9 from Pinellas County Jail.

An investigation is ongoing.

This story was originally published March 29, 2019 at 9:03 AM.