LEESBURG, Fla. — A Leesburg police officer was hurt Tuesday while exchanging gunfire with a man, authorities said.
- Leesburg police officer exchanged gunfire with armed man
- Cops: Officer fell down during exchange, hit his head, and bled
- Officer taken to Leesburg Regional Medical Center
Police said they got a call just before 1 p.m. about a man with a backpack waving a gun around on Glen Ridge Drive.
Witnesses said that when a responding officer Mark Johnson, 31, found Donaven Leon Owens, 20, and confronted him, the man opened fire.
Johnson returned fire, but as he backed away, he fell, hit his head, and began bleeding.
More officers arrived in the area and chased Owens across U.S. 441 before he was taken into custody.
Johnson was taken to Leesburg Regional Medical Center. Medical staff initially thought the blood was from a gunshot wound, but they soon determined it was from the head injury from the fall.
Charges are pending against Owens.
As protocol, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement will investigate the shooting since it involved an office.