Following an extensive review, our office has concluded that a deputy from the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office was justified in his use of deadly force against 35-year-old Daniel Lighty on December 9, 2021. Our review determined that several Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to multiple 911 calls of a man in a Brandon parking lot firing numerous rounds from a handgun. When uniformed deputies arrived, they observed Daniel Lighty, armed with a gun, standing near a minivan in the parking lot of the Washed Up Car Wash. Lighty was firing his gun indiscriminately in the middle of the day near a busy road, endangering the lives of members of the public as well as the responding law enforcement officers. Surveillance and body worn camera video then show Lighty directing his fire at the responding deputies and ignoring repeated warnings to drop his weapon. Lighty fired multiple rounds at the deputies from his 9mm pistol. In response to this, one of the deputies fired his weapon three times at Lighty. Neither Lighty nor the deputy was struck. In reaching this conclusion, our office conducted an exhaustive review of all available evidence and applicable legal standards. These steps included but were not limited to:
- reviewing interviews of the involved law enforcement officers
- examining physical evidence
- reviewing video evidence
- reviewing photographic evidence
- reviewing 911 calls, radio communications, body worn camera footage, and relevant audio
- applying the applicable laws
The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. The investigation found that 911 calls from members of the public began coming in at approximately 12:48 p.m. on Friday, December 9, 2021, and deputies arrived at approximately 12:53 p.m. Multiple 911 calls described Lighty’s location and the fact that he was firing several times and reloading before law enforcement arrived. Responding deputies encountered Lighty, armed with a gun, in the parking lot of the Washed Up Car Wash at 834 East Brandon Blvd.
Surveillance video shows Lighty firing multiple rounds prior to law enforcement’s arrival. The surveillance video also shows Lighty continuing to fire his gun after the deputies arrived and directed him to drop his weapon. Lighty is seen on video firing in the direction of deputies. There is also damage to the building where the deputies were seeking cover consistent with Lighty’s shots, as well as body worn camera footage from multiple deputies. A responding deputy’s vehicle was struck by a bullet fired by Lighty while the deputy was responding to the scene and before any shots were fired by a member of law enforcement.
Lighty was warned to drop his weapon several times before the deputy fired, but the warnings were ignored. The deputy fired three rounds from his handgun. None of the rounds struck Lighty. After being fired on by the deputy, Lighty continued to fire his 9mm pistol toward the deputies. This incident occurred in the middle of the day near busy Brandon Blvd., endangering the lives of many people in addition to threatening the lives of the responding law enforcement officers.
Members of the crisis response team from HCSO were ultimately able to make phone contact with Lighty and convince him to surrender. A search warrant was executed on Lighty’s minivan, revealing two 9mm pistols on the front passenger side as well as 200 rounds of unspent 9mm ammunition. A total of 76 spent shell casings were recovered in the area where Lighty had been standing—in the parking lot of the car wash and inside the minivan. Firearms analysis by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement determined that the two pistols in Lighty’s minivan had fired all 76 of the spent casings. No one was injured.
The name of the law enforcement officer is being withheld due to Marsy’s Law.
After our thorough analysis, we have determined that the facts and evidence of this incident prove that the law enforcement officer reasonably believed he was in fear of imminent death or great bodily harm to himself, other deputies, and civilians when he used deadly force. He also did not have a duty to retreat. These findings satisfy Florida Statutes 776.012 and 776.05 and, therefore, under Florida law, the use of deadly force is justified. Accordingly, there is no legal basis for criminal charges against the deputy.
Our office typically includes an initial release of materials when publishing a use of deadly force review; that is not possible in this case because the materials are all evidence in an active criminal investigation. Under Fla. Statute 119.071(2)(c), evidence in active criminal investigations is exempt from release. Documents related to the case may be available in the future once all cases are resolved. Under Florida’s Public Records Law, any member of the public can make a request. Find details on making a request on the State Attorney’s Office Public Records page.