Two Bradenton police officers are recovering at home after a driver intentionally reversed into them outside a Wawa early Sunday, leaving one with a traumatic brain injury and the other with leg and knee injuries. The suspect, 35-year-old Dejerrian Murray, remained in custody after a judge ordered him held without bond at his initial court appearance Monday afternoon.
Police responded to the store near First Street and Sixth Avenue East shortly after 3:20 a.m. Sunday. Employees had reported that a man outside was waving a gun and harassing customers. Lt. Perry Merrill and Officer John Bembry approached Murray in an effort to defuse the encounter.
Body camera footage shows Murray getting into the driver's seat, revving the engine and quickly backing up. The car struck both officers and threw them onto the pavement, dislodging Merrill's body camera. Two officers who had arrived as backup fired at the departing vehicle.
Murray fled the parking lot, and officers from the Bradenton Police Department, the Manatee County Sheriff's Office and the Florida Highway Patrol pursued him at high speed. The chase headed north toward the Sunshine Skyway Bridge before returning south to Bradenton. It ended near First Street and 10th Avenue West, where Murray crashed after troopers used a PIT maneuver. He received treatment for injuries that were not life-threatening before being booked into the Manatee County jail.
Merrill sustained a traumatic brain injury and a brain bleed. Bembry injured his leg and knee. Police Chief Josh Cramer described the officers as "Very lucky, very fortunate to be alive." He said Bembry had tried to discharge himself from the hospital Sunday so he could assist detectives processing the scene. Cramer also expressed confidence that both officers would eventually return to full duty.
The charges against Murray include two counts of aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer with a deadly weapon, fleeing or attempting to elude an officer at high speed or with wanton disregard, and separate hit-and-run charges involving serious bodily injury and injury. He also faces charges of reckless driving causing serious bodily injury, violating probation and resisting arrest without violence. Possession of a firearm during a felony and improper exhibition of dangerous weapons or firearms were added as new charges.
Records show that a state trooper cited Murray three weeks earlier for exceeding 100 mph, violating his probation conditions. Cramer criticized Murray's release on bond in previous cases, saying he should have remained in jail while those matters were pending. The chief said Monday that he had spoken with Murray's probation officer to ensure contact with the detective handling the case and to seek his continued detention.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is conducting an independent investigation that includes the responding officers' gunfire. State and local officials said the case remains active, with additional details to be released as investigators finalize their findings.
