Florida deputy shooting: Another Michael Brown-like shooting? Unarmed man shot

A Florida deputy shooting of an African American man is once again stirring racial controversy. Just weeks after a grand jury declined to indict former Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson in the shooting death of 18-year-old Michael Brown, a white deputy in Florida was placed on administrative leave after shooting and injuring an unarmed black man who was stealing a car.

Writes Reuters news service on Dec. 8, via the HuffPost: “A Florida sheriff called for calm after a 28-year-old unarmed black man in a stolen car was shot and critically wounded early on Monday by a white officer… amid racially charged protests nationwide about police violence.” A witness reported that similar to the claim made in the Michael Brown shooting, the victim had his hands raised in the air when he was shot.

“I ask everyone to not rush to judgment and allow the investigation to be completed,” pleaded Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings. The shooter was named – Sergeant Robert McCarthy – who said the suspect, Cedric Bartee, was driving the stolen car and “made extensive furtive movements,” causing McCarthy to fire three times into the vehicle, hitting Bartee and injuring him critically.

The suspect was taken to the hospital and into surgery, where he remains in critical but stable condition. A second man, riding in the passenger seat, was arrested unharmed.

Adds WFTV.com out of Orlando: “At a news conference, Demings said he is sensitive to the reaction to recent police shootings in Ferguson, Missouri, and other parts of the country. He says he aims for transparency in the investigation.”