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Derrick Brathwaite

Age : 39

Gender : Male

Race : Black

Date : 07/10/2026

Location : Spectrum parking lot, State Road 60

City : Lake Wales

County : Polk

State : Florida

Agency : Polk County Sheriff's Office; Lake Wales Police Department

Officer(s) :Not disclosed

Cause of Death : Gunshot

Event : Killed by police during attempted arrest

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

On 07/10/2026 at approximately 9:00 a.m., Polk County Sheriff's Office deputies and Auburndale Police Department officers responded to the Spectrum store on U.S. Highway 92 West after multiple 911 callers reported gunfire and a possible suicide. When officers arrived, they found 20-year-old Kaitlyn Green lying in the parking lot with multiple gunshot wounds. She was pronounced dead at the scene. Her boyfriend, Derrick Brathwaite, 39, was nearby holding a handgun.
Sheriff Grady Judd said officers repeatedly ordered Brathwaite to drop the handgun. Instead, Brathwaite walked away while still armed. Officers continued issuing commands as he moved through the parking lot. According to the Sheriff's Office, Brathwaite then turned toward law enforcement while holding the handgun, and multiple officers fired their weapons, striking him. Deputies rendered emergency medical aid until Polk County Fire Rescue personnel arrived. Brathwaite was transported to a hospital, where he died from his injuries.
Investigators determined Brathwaite and Green had been involved in a dating relationship. According to Sheriff Judd, Brathwaite confronted Green in the Spectrum parking lot and shot her multiple times before remaining at the scene. Detectives recovered the handgun used during the incident and processed the parking lot for physical evidence, surveillance video, and witness statements.
The Polk County Sheriff's Office released surveillance video and Sheriff Judd conducted a detailed press briefing describing the incident as a "classic suicide by cop." The Sheriff's Office stated the involved deputies and Auburndale police officers will be investigated by the Tenth Judicial Circuit Officer-Involved Deadly Incident Task Force. Upon completion, the investigation will be submitted to the State Attorney's Office for review.

SOURCE LINKS :

https://www.mysuncoast.com/2026/07/10/polk-county-man-shot-by-police-after-killing-girlfriend-deputies-say/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eegVSESbWjg