Polk deputies shoot, kill man suspected of shooting mother
LAKELAND (FOX 13) - Polk County Deputies say they shot and killed a man who was threatening to kill his own mother.
It happened on Del Rose Drive North in Lakeland around 6 p.m. Thursday. Deputies were called by a woman who lives at 2938 Del Rose Drive N.
She was apparently in an argument with her son, 54-year-old John Pacuicrk about her request to move a car. After a cat and mouse game, deputies came out of the house to find John tangling with his brother, Theodore.
They say John was threatening to kill his 75-year-old mother. He shot her in the leg twice.
Theodore jumped up when deputies got outside. That’s when John allegedly pointed his gun at deputies, who shot him multiple times, killing him.
“People don’t normally act like that. People don’t normally point guns at law enforcement officers. But once again, John learned the hard way. If you point a gun at one of my deputies, we’re gonna shoot ya. And that’s what happened tonight. They protected themselves. They saved Theodore’s life, after Theodore saved his mom’s life,” Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said during a press conference at the scene.
John’s mother was taken to a local hospital and is expected to survive her injuries. Deputies aren't yet sure why her request to move a car made him so angry.