JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office has made several bodycam videos of officer-involved shootings publically available this week.
This comes after a press conference held by Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters Tuesday where he said that transparency will now be a requirement of operation for the agency.
Through an agency transparency policy, Waters said JSO will proactively release body-worn camera footage of any officer involved shooting incident within 21 days, as long as the release does not interfere with an active criminal investigation.
"Trust -- it is earned and retained through openness and honesty, and I promise this community that our agency will be forward-facing and transparent as permissible under the law," said Waters at the conference.
The four videos were published to the agency's official YouTube page. They are summarized below in chronological order by date of the shooting. Viewer discretion is advised.
In the afternoon hours of Oct. 16, officers responded to the 2000 block of Edgewood Avenue West in reference to a reported armed suicidal individual. As the first officers arrived, police say the suspect shot at them as they exited their vehicles. The officers immediately took cover, and others responded to assist in setting up a perimeter.
During the attempts to talk the suspect out of a residence, JSO says he continued to threaten officers and others with the firearm. At one point, police say the suspect appeared in the doorway of the house exhibiting threatening actions with the firearm, to which two of the officers responded with shots being fired at the suspect.
Though the suspect was not struck, officers say he followed further commands to exit the home and was taken into custody a short time later without further incident.
On Nov. 2, members of JSO’s Narcotics Squad were deployed in the area of Edgewood and Broadway Avenues as they searched for a suspect believed to be involved in a prior overdose death. As officers spotted the suspect, he fled on foot into an adjoining neighborhood, JSO said.
Officers spotted the suspect a short time later and a foot pursuit began. As the officers approached the suspect behind a residence, he began shooting at them. Officers returned fire as the suspect jumped a fence.
A perimeter was established, and a short time later, the suspect again attempted to flee from officers and gunfire was exchanged. The suspect was struck multiple times during the volley of gunfire and was subsequently pronounced dead on scene.
Police later identified the man as Matthew Orlando Dilworth, and noted that he was a "known fentanyl dealer."
On Nov. 5, 2022 just after 7 a.m., JSO officers responded to the 2300 block of Philips Highway to the report of gunfire. Following their arrival, officers say they were canvassing the outside area and speaking with possible witnesses when gunfire erupted in the parking lot of the business.
They immediately began giving commands for the suspect to drop his firearm and returned fire, striking the suspect, police said.
The suspect was rushed to the hospital and at last check was in critical condition, according to police. The suspect has not been identified.
On Dec. 12, 2022 just after 1 p.m., officers responded to the 2200 block of Hyde Park Road in reference to a reported shooting. Police say as they arrived, a gunshot was heard from inside a residence. Officers took positions of cover, and JSO says the suspect emerged from a house holding a firearm.
Police said officers gave multiple commands for him to drop the firearm, but he raised the firearm toward the officers and one of those officers shot the suspect. The suspect received medical treatment and was taken to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries.
(Editor's Note: The videos above were all edited by the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office and uploaded to this article in the same format in which they were provided to the public. The exception is the incident on Nov. 5. First Coast News has chosen to blur the man on the ground due to the graphic nature of the video)