DELRAY BEACH FLA. Nov 19 2007 — A Delray Beach police detective shot and wounded a fleeing shoplifter Friday morning and was injured himself when the shoplifter drove her car into him as she made her escape, police said.
After Darlene Rawls, 37, shoplifted a $40 bathrobe from Linens 'n Things, she refused to give up peacefully when a detective cornered her on Linton Boulevard and Southwest Fourth Avenue, police said. Rawls reversed, then drove forward, striking the detective and injuring his knee. He got off one shot, which struck Rawls' left forearm before entering her abdomen.
Rawls sped off in a gold, late-model Mitsubishi Galant, a rental car, as the detective got off the ground and pursued her in his car. She eluded him, but when she got out at Bethesda Medical Center, police caught up with her, said officer Jeff Messer, police spokesman.
Rawls' wound was not life-threatening. She was taken to Delray Medical Center before doctors released her and police took her into custody. She admitted to the crime, Messer said.
The detective, whose name was not released, may have sustained ligament damage to his right knee when the Galant hit him, police said. After quitting the pursuit, he returned to the police station and was taken to Delray Medical Center for treatment. He was later released.
The detective believed his life was in danger when he opened fire, Messer said.
He was placed on paid administrative leave, a routine move whenever an officer fires a weapon.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is leading an investigation into the shooting.
The incident began when Rawls, of West Palm Beach, and at least one man and one other woman were seen shoplifting a $40 bathrobe from Linens 'n Things in The Plaza at Delray in the 1600 block of South Federal Highway, Messer said.
Rawls, who has been arrested 18 times in Florida on charges that include shoplifting and larceny, made off with the bathrobe, but she and the other shoplifters didn't get far, police said.
Store workers called police, and the detective spotted Rawls turning out of the parking lot onto westbound Linton Boulevard. He pulled his car in front of the Galant near the intersection of Linton Boulevard and Southwest Fourth Avenue, and it stopped. The lights on his car were flashing. He stepped out and identified himself as a police officer, his badge visible, Messer said.
Rawls' eyes met the detective's, Messer said, and then she turned and said something to the other people in the car.
That's when she reversed, pulled forward and tried to drive around the detective, hitting him, and taking a bullet before she could get away.
Authorities were looking for the other people in the Galant, believed to be as many as two men and one other woman. Police believe one of the men in the car may have shown up after the shoplifting incident. They also were searching for the Galant, which probably has a broken windshield from either the bullet or the impact with the detective, Messer said.
Rawls already had a warrant out for her arrest on a charge of uttering a forged instrument, police said. She was expected to be booked into the Palm Beach County Jail.
The shooting, which caused authorities to shut down westbound Linton Boulevard from Southwest Fourth Avenue to Old Dixie Highway, also resulted in a second arrest.
As the incident unfolded, Delray Beach police sent out an alert to other law enforcement agencies to be on the lookout for the Galant.
Boynton Beach police officer Rachel Loy spotted a silver Mitsubishi Galant and tried to pull over the car, but the driver, Kashus Davis, 22, of Boynton Beach, did not stop, police said.
He drove off, tried to run away and was finally Tasered before police found crack cocaine in his car and took him to jail on various charges.
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After Darlene Rawls, 37, shoplifted a $40 bathrobe from Linens 'n Things, she refused to give up peacefully when a detective cornered her on Linton Boulevard and Southwest Fourth Avenue, police said. Rawls reversed, then drove forward, striking the detective and injuring his knee. He got off one shot, which struck Rawls' left forearm before entering her abdomen.
Rawls sped off in a gold, late-model Mitsubishi Galant, a rental car, as the detective got off the ground and pursued her in his car. She eluded him, but when she got out at Bethesda Medical Center, police caught up with her, said officer Jeff Messer, police spokesman.
Rawls' wound was not life-threatening. She was taken to Delray Medical Center before doctors released her and police took her into custody. She admitted to the crime, Messer said.
The detective, whose name was not released, may have sustained ligament damage to his right knee when the Galant hit him, police said. After quitting the pursuit, he returned to the police station and was taken to Delray Medical Center for treatment. He was later released.
The detective believed his life was in danger when he opened fire, Messer said.
He was placed on paid administrative leave, a routine move whenever an officer fires a weapon.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is leading an investigation into the shooting.
The incident began when Rawls, of West Palm Beach, and at least one man and one other woman were seen shoplifting a $40 bathrobe from Linens 'n Things in The Plaza at Delray in the 1600 block of South Federal Highway, Messer said.
Rawls, who has been arrested 18 times in Florida on charges that include shoplifting and larceny, made off with the bathrobe, but she and the other shoplifters didn't get far, police said.
Store workers called police, and the detective spotted Rawls turning out of the parking lot onto westbound Linton Boulevard. He pulled his car in front of the Galant near the intersection of Linton Boulevard and Southwest Fourth Avenue, and it stopped. The lights on his car were flashing. He stepped out and identified himself as a police officer, his badge visible, Messer said.
Rawls' eyes met the detective's, Messer said, and then she turned and said something to the other people in the car.
That's when she reversed, pulled forward and tried to drive around the detective, hitting him, and taking a bullet before she could get away.
Authorities were looking for the other people in the Galant, believed to be as many as two men and one other woman. Police believe one of the men in the car may have shown up after the shoplifting incident. They also were searching for the Galant, which probably has a broken windshield from either the bullet or the impact with the detective, Messer said.
Rawls already had a warrant out for her arrest on a charge of uttering a forged instrument, police said. She was expected to be booked into the Palm Beach County Jail.
The shooting, which caused authorities to shut down westbound Linton Boulevard from Southwest Fourth Avenue to Old Dixie Highway, also resulted in a second arrest.
As the incident unfolded, Delray Beach police sent out an alert to other law enforcement agencies to be on the lookout for the Galant.
Boynton Beach police officer Rachel Loy spotted a silver Mitsubishi Galant and tried to pull over the car, but the driver, Kashus Davis, 22, of Boynton Beach, did not stop, police said.
He drove off, tried to run away and was finally Tasered before police found crack cocaine in his car and took him to jail on various charges.
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