Jacksonville officer who killed knife-wielding suspect was also involved in 2016 fatal shooting

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Jacksonville officer who killed a knife-wielding suspect Wednesday night was previously involved in a fatal officer-involved shooting and the suspect who was killed had six previous arrests in Jacksonville.

STORY: Officer in Vernell Bing case shoots and kills knife-wielding man threatening veteran 

Officers were dispatched to the 700 block of West State Street at 11:23 p.m., Chief T.K. Waters said.

A witness saw 33-year-old Frankie Feliciano holding a knife to the neck of a veteran in a wheelchair and went to a nearby business to call police.

Officer Tyler Landreville was the first officer to arrive at the scene.

Witnesses guided Landreville to where the incident was happening and Landreville ran toward the incident, Waters said.

Landreville saw Feliciano holding a knife to the victim’s neck and commanded Feliciano to drop his knife.

When Feliciano refused, Landreville “was forced to make the quick decision to use deadly force,” Waters said, shooting Feliciano three times.

Waters said from the time Landreville arrived on scene to the time of the shooting was about 35 seconds. When asked if Feliciano motioned toward Landreville, Waters said, “He was holding the knife on our victim, our disabled victim in a wheel chair. His movements indicated that had Officer Landreville not taken that action, it could have been catastrophic.”

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Landreville, who was wearing a body-worn camera at the time of the shooting, has been placed on administrative leave. Waters said the release of body-worn camera will come after the investigative process takes place.

“I do want to stress this: Officers come to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and they work for the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, willing every single day to go out and to do the job that’s necessary to protect the lives of the citizens of our community,” Waters said. “This situation, this is a microcosm of what officers face every single day, the men and women of the Sheriff’s Office. This decision, though not taken lightly, took place very, very quickly. That decision helped save the life of one of the members of our community.”

In 2016, Landreville shot Vernell Bing, 22, in the head following a high-speed chase and head-on crash in Jacksonville's Springfield neighborhood. In 2017, the State Attorney's Office ruled the shooting of Bing as justifiable.

When asked about Landreville’s involvement in the 2016 shooting of Bing, Waters mentioned that the case was cleared by the State Attorney’s Office and said it appears in Wednesday’s shooting, Landreville did what he was supposed to have done.

Feliciano’s criminal history included eight arrests, six of which took place in Jacksonville. His most recent arrest was on Feb. 25 on suspicion of aggravated battery using a lug wrench. Previous arrests include criminal mischief and trespassing in January; probation violation in 2016; domestic battery in 2015; and battery and resisting an officer without violence in 2011.

Action News Jax reporter Ryan Nelson asked if there was any indication that Feliciano was having a medical episode. Waters said JSO does not have that information right now and that investigators are still working to determine what led up to Feliciano holding the knife to the victim’s throat. Waters also said that JSO does not have any information on Baker Act records for Feliciano. The Baker Act allows a person to be involuntarily committed if they are at risk of hurting themselves or others.

WATCH: JSO briefing on the officer-involved shooting: 

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