Minneola, Florida: Bodycam Released After Lake County Deputy Shoots Teen in Foot, Mistaking Cellphone for a Gun

A Lake County sheriff's deputy shot a 17-year-old in the foot early Thursday after mistaking the teenager's illuminated cellphone for a gun during a car burglary call in Minneola, according to a probable cause affidavit released Friday. The sheriff's office has released a short body camera clip from the shooting, and Inside Lake published the affidavit account on Saturday morning.

The 3:45 a.m. call on Cumberland Circle

Deputies were called to Cumberland Circle at about 3:45 a.m. on Thursday after a resident reported seeing a person dressed in black and wearing a ski mask near vehicles on home security footage, the affidavit says. A responding deputy found the teenager rummaging through a green BMW. The teenager ran when the deputy got out of his patrol vehicle, according to the affidavit.

The sheriff's office identified the teenager as Terell Johnson, 17. Sheriff's Office Capt. John Herrell said Johnson was arrested on Thursday while being treated at Orlando Regional Medical Center and is expected to fully recover.

The chase and the shot

The deputy lost sight of Johnson near a white fence, returned to his patrol vehicle to reposition, and then resumed the chase on foot, the affidavit says. Johnson came back around the fence to retrieve a backpack and a motorcycle style e-bike he had left behind. He pointed the illuminated phone directly at the deputy, who believed it was a gun and fired, striking Johnson in the foot, according to the affidavit.

The body camera clip released by the sheriff's office shows a brief light in the darkness before Johnson comes into view on the grass. The footage does not clearly show what he was holding or how he held it.

At the hospital, Johnson told deputies he had entered the BMW twice and lost his e-bike keys while running from the deputy. He said he turned on his phone flashlight to look for the keys and then encountered the deputy, according to the affidavit.

Charges and the state investigation

Johnson was arrested on charges of burglary of an unoccupied conveyance while wearing a mask, attempted burglary of a conveyance while wearing a mask, and resisting an officer without violence. The attempted burglary charge involves a Toyota Corolla on the same street. The owners of both cars reported nothing missing, and the BMW owner told investigators he did not wish to prosecute, the affidavit account says.

No deputies were injured. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is investigating the shooting, and the deputy was placed on administrative leave pending an internal review. Both steps are standard procedure after a deputy involved shooting in Lake County.