JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office has identified Eric Nathaniel Thornton, 37, as the man killed by police during a narcotics investigation earlier this week.
JSO released images of the knife officers say Thornton was holding at the time of the shooting.
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According to Mark Romano, chief of investigations with the Sheriff’s Office, detectives were watching someone they said is a known drug dealer, now identified as Brian Brightman.
He was said to be a passenger in the vehicle that was under surveillance in the parking lot of an apartment complex near North Main Street and Drury Lane. Thornton has been identified as the driver of that vehicle.
Romano said detectives saw multiple transactions happen from the car that contained Thornton, Brightman and an 8-year-old boy, who appears to be Brightman’s son.
After police attempted to block the vehicle, Romano said, the driver, later identified as Thornton, attempted to run away. Two detectives said they followed the driver and noticed a knife in his hand.
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According to Romano, detectives told him to drop the knife, but Thornton turned toward them with the knife still in his hand, which resulted in the detectives fatally shooting him.
Thornton was taken to the hospital where he died from his injuries, police said.
Brightman and the 8-year-old boy stayed inside the car, and the child was not hurt, according to Romano.
Brightman was arrested Thursday night and charged with selling fentanyl, unlawful use of a two-way device and child abuse. He has served two prison terms for prior drug convictions and was last released in 2019.
The two officers involved were placed on administrative leave, which is standard procedure.