Florida Cops Arrested For Drunken Drive-By Shooting While Driving A Prius
Two Broward County Sheriff’s Office deputies have been arrested after an incident in which Florida Cop Watch reports the deputies allegedly left a West Palm Beach strip club and then proceeded to discharge at least one firearm in the direction of a nearby Walgreens.
An affidavit released to the Sun Sentinel indicated that the deputies were partying at an Irish pub known as Roxy’s Roof Top Bar and, after leaving the pub, the two BSO deputies and a civilian, Jeff Behan, hopped into a Toyota Prius and drove down Okeechobee Boulevard while Stepelton discharged several rounds from his.40-caliber Glock. The other deputy, Christopher Mattingly, also fired a few shots while seated in the front of the car.
The deputies were off-duty during the time of the alleged incident.
One of the two BSO deputies suspected in the drive-by shooting was 26-year-old Norman Stepelton, who was on paid administrative leave for more than three weeks prior to turning himself in a couple of days ago on a second-degree felony charge of discharging a firearm from a vehicle.
BSO spokesperson Veda Coleman-Write indicated that Stepelton is now on unpaid administrative leave.
A blog on Broward Palm Beach indicated that Deputy Stepelton had turned himself in on January 28, 2015. He walked into the PBSO headquarters on Wednesday evening and was released the following day without having to pay bail, as official documentation revealed that his bond was set at $0.00, according to PBSO arrest records.
While police departments typically release mug shots for those arrested of crimes, including drive-by shootings, PBSO has not done so for Stepelton.
What the officers were shooting at is unclear at this time. However, other PBSO deputies in front of a Walgreens at the intersection of Okeechobee Boulevard and Haverhill Road thought that they were the intended targets of the shots and subsequently pursued the Prius. They pulled the civilian vehicle and its suspects over and took all of them into custody. The vehicle was searched and revealed an empty magazine clip located in the rear of the vehicle, where Stepelton was allegedly sitting.
The trio were not booked the night of the incident.
Broward Palm Beach indicated that Stepelton and Behan are both facing second-degree felonies, however, Mattingly remains uncharged and on restricted assignment.
Also in Florida news, the Inquisitr reported earlier today that SWAT had been deployed to the scene of a naked gunman rolling around on a rooftop.
What do you think these two BSO deputies were thinking the night of the alleged incident in which shots were fired from a moving vehicle? Does Seth Rogan and Bill Hader playing cops in the movie Superbad come to mind?
[Image via YouTube]
