Sincere Pierce, 18, and A.J. Crooms, 16, were shot at 10am Friday by Brevard County Sheriff’s Office deputies, who believed the teens may have been in a stolen car.
The deputies involved were named Tuesday as Deputy Jafet Santiago-Miranda and Deputy Carson Hendren, who have been placed on paid administrative leave as the case is investigated.
They followed Crooms Friday as he pulled into a driveway of a local house and called on him at least seven times to stop moving the vehicle but he failed to do so. They believed he was the same person who had driven away from another deputy in the area just moments before.
Sheriff Wayne Ivey claims they were ‘forced to fire’ after Crooms accelerated toward Santiago-Miranda and put him in danger. The sheriff’s office has not stated if the teens’ car was stolen or not, however, two guns were found in a search of the vehicle. The case has been picked up by notable civil rights attorney Ben Crump who claims that the teens posed no threat to the deputies as the families call for more details to be released.
