Local

Body camera video shows police response to deadly shooting at Groveland daycare

GROVELAND, Fla. — Body camera video released by the Groveland Police Department shows the first moments after a shooting at a local daycare that left a man dead.

Police said they were called to the We Are The Future Academy on Groveland Farms Road on the afternoon of May 12 for reports of a physical fight between two men that escalated into a shooting.

READ: ‘Very much a tragedy’: Man fatally shoots wife, son & mother-in-law in Casselberry

One of the men was taken to South Lake Hospital with minor injuries.

The other man, identified as Stephan Jefferson, was flown to Orlando Regional Medical Center where he died from a single gunshot wound.

The video released by the police department shows the shooter immediately raise his hands for the responding officers.

“It’s me, I’m the one,” he can be heard saying as they place him in handcuffs.

READ: Flagler sheriff: 2 teens killed caught in middle of feud stemming from social media, rap songs

UPDATE On Thursday, May 12, 2022, at about 4:20pm, officers with the Groveland Police Department responded to We Are...

Posted by Groveland Police Department on Friday, May 13, 2022

Police also released 911 calls from the day of the shooting. In one call, a person who identified himself as the shooter can be heard claiming he acted in self-defense when he fired.

“I was attacked by somebody. I was in fear for my life,” the caller says. “He was choking me. He was hitting me, and I defended myself.”

No arrest was made in the case. A joint investigation by the Groveland Police Department and members of the State Attorney’s Office backed the initial findings that the shooting was a justified act of self-defense.

“There are no winners here,” Groveland Police Chief and Public Safety Director Shawn Ramsey said. “A child is without a parent and a family is left broken, leaving them without a loved one.”

READ: Police: one injured, one in custody in Titusville shooting

The shooter hasn’t been identified since he hasn’t been charged with a crime.

The investigation into the shooting is ongoing.

Click here to download the free WFTV news and weather apps, click here to download the WFTV Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.