Suspect arrested in shooting death of Florida officer; ‘not much hope’ for 2nd shot cop

A Marine veteran has been arrested in the shooting death Friday of a Kissimmee, Fla., police officer, and there is “not much hope” that a second officer he’s accused of shooting will survive, Kissimmee Police Chief Jeff O’Dell said Saturday morning.

Police arrested 45-year-old Everett Glenn Miller on charges of first-degree murder, resisting arrest and carrying a concealed weapon, according to the Osceola County Jail.

Officer Matthew Baxter was killed and Sgt. Richard “Sam” Howard was shot and is in grave condition, O’Dell said. The uniformed officers were investigating three suspicious people reported in the area about 9:30 p.m. Five minutes later, dispatchers received the first call reporting the officers had been shot.

The officers did not have time to return fire. O’Dell said “it looked like they were surprised” by the gunfire.

O’Dell said Miller fled to a bar a few blocks away, where he was later arrested.

The Osceola County Sheriff’s Office had recently taken Miller into custody under Florida’s Baker Act, which allows the involuntary commitment of people in mental health crises.

Baxter, 27, was married to a fellow Kissimmee police officer, and they had three young children, O’Dell said. Howard, 36, has one child.

“They are both wonderful men, family men. They are both very committed to the community,” O’Dell said. “They were the epitome of what you ask for in law enforcement officers.”

Baxter and Howard were wearing body armor under their uniforms when they were shot, O’Dell said. Howard is a 10-year veteran of the department and Baxter had been with the Kissimmee department for three years.

As of 9 a.m. Saturday, Howard remained in critical condition; O’Dell said there was “not much hope that he will survive this.”

Miller, who had two guns — a 9-millimeter and .22-caliber revolver — was taken into custody about 11:30 p.m. Friday, authorities said.

O’Dell said he did not expect to make any additional arrests.

“This is a tough time for each and every one of us,” O’Dell said.

O’Dell said the community needs to work with law enforcement. Social media posts showed Miller threatening law enforcement, O’Dell said, “but we never got a call on that.’’

The area where the shooting happened is in McLaren Circle, which has historically been plagued by crime. O’Dell said Howard and Baxter were doing proactive police work there because it is known for drug sales.

Messages of support flowed from across the country.

On its Twitter account, the Orlando Police Department said, “Please keep @kissimmeepolice in your prayers tonight.”

The Orange County Sheriff’s Office also offered its own message of comfort, saying, “Our solidarity is with @kissimmeepolice as they deal with this tragic loss.”

Two police officers were also shot in Jacksonville, Fla., on Friday night. Both will survive. Two Pennsylvania state troopers were also reported shot late Friday.

President Trump sent a message of support to the Kissimmee police.

It has been a dangerous year for law enforcement in Central Florida. Lt. Debra Clayton, a 17-year veteran of the Orlando Police Department, was killed in a gunfight in a Wal-Mart parking lot while attempting to arrest a man suspected of killing his ex-girlfriend.

Orange County sheriff’s Deputy Norman Lewis, a motorcycle officer, was also killed that day during the pursuit for Loyd.

Earlier reports Friday night from official sources indicated that two officers had died.

Orlando Sentinel staff writers Bianca Padro Ocasio, Christal Hayes, Krista Torralva and Gal Tziperman Lotan contributed to this report.

cdoornbos@orlandosentinel.com, 407-650-6931 or @CaitlinDoornbos

UPDATES:

8:25 a.m. This article was updated with a suspect arrested

This article was originally published at 12:40 a.m.