By Mark Price
The Charlotte Observer
OCALA, Fla. — A woman handcuffed and seated in the back of a patrol car pulled a hidden gun and fired multiple shots at the deputy driving her to jail, according to investigators in Florida.
The barrage of shots sent the car crashing into a utility pole along U.S. 441, and the deputy survived with only a bullet graze, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office said in a June 23 news release.
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It happened around 1 a.m. on Monday, June 23, in Ocala, after the deputy arrested Rheanna Harden for driving with a suspended license and drug possession, officials said.
“Harden was handcuffed, searched, and secured in the back seat of (the deputy’s) patrol vehicle for transport to the Marion County Jail,” the sheriff’s office said.
“While traveling northbound on S. Highway 441 near the 2900 block, Harden — still handcuffed in the backseat — retrieved a firearm concealed in her pants and opened fire towards (the deputy’s) head. The patrol vehicle crashed into a utility pole, at which point he exited the vehicle, returned fire, and took cover.”
Details of Harden’s surrender were not released and investigators did not say if she was struck by the returned gunfire.
She and the deputy were taken to hospitals. The deputy suffered a bullet “graze wound near his right eye,” while Harden had shoulder and hip injuries, officials said.
Ocala is about an 80-mile drive northwest from Orlando.
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