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State, local investigators clear Hernando deputies in attempted suicide-by-cop shooting

 
Hernando County Sheriff's Office, 18900 Cortez Blvd., Brooksville  DOUGLAS R. CLIFFORD   |   Times
Hernando County Sheriff's Office, 18900 Cortez Blvd., Brooksville DOUGLAS R. CLIFFORD | Times
Published Aug. 7, 2018

SPRING HILL — State and local law enforcement officials have cleared Hernando County Sheriff's deputies of any wrongdoing in the non-fatal shooting of Gary Jean Schryver, who told investigators he purposely provoked the Feb. 27 incident using a fake weapon.

According to an investigative report released by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Schryver, 57, admitted to investigators that he has long suffered from mental health issues and "wanted the deputy to shoot him."

The District 5 State Attorney's Office reviewed and concurred with the FDLE finding. An internal investigation at the Sheriff's Office found no violations of agency policy, Sheriff Al Nienhuis told the Tampa Bay Times Monday.

"It really is a terrible situation that these people put deputies in," he said. "The last thing a deputy wants to do — particularly with someone in need of medical attention related to mental health — is use deadly force. But if they put us in the situation, we can't wait to see if the gun is real ... You literally have a split second to make those decisions."

Schryver had called BayCare Health the morning of shooting and left a voice message for someone to call him back before "something bad happens," the FDLE report said. The hospital informed the Sheriff's Office and deputies later visited Schryver's home at 12480 Feather St., where he was found landscaping in the backyard about 1:30 p.m.

"Schryver had a calm demeanor and never stated that he wanted to hurt himself or others," the report said, according to an FDLE interview with deputy David Martin.

The deputy answered Schryver's questions about where he would be taken should he be placed under the Baker Act, Florida's law that allows people with mental illnesses to be held involuntarily for up to 72 hours if they are threat to the safety of themselves or others. He gave Schryver his business card before leaving and calling the hospital, the report said.

Just before 3 p.m., Schryver walked into Family Dollar Store at 12500 Spring Hill Drive and called 911, advising of a man with a gun inside the store, giving a description of himself. He then left the store and started walking back toward his residence as deputies began to arrive in the area, the report said.

Deputy Murray "Jerry" Foradas encountered Schryver at the intersection of Marble and Antelope streets, about two blocks from the man's home. As the deputy tried to talk to him, Schryver "began to act suspiciously and had his hands in his pockets then behind his back," the report said.

Foradas told Schryver, who was "acting erratically," investigators said, to show his hands. Eventually, the man pulled what deputies called a "makeshift firearm" — later found to be two wooden blocks positioned in the shape of a gun and wrapped in black electrical tape — from behind his back.

"Fearing that Schryver was going to point the barrel at him, Foradas fired three rounds," the report said, according to an interview with the deputy. "He first fired two rounds, and when Schryver did not drop the weapon, he fired one more round."

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Wounded near his left hip, Schryver fell to the ground and dropped what he was holding, the report said.

"When Foradas noticed the weapon was an object wrapped in tape, he asked Schryver why he made him shoot, and Schryver said it was planned," the report said, adding that the man was transported to Regional Medical Center Bayonet Point in Hudson for treatment.

In a later interview with law enforcement, Schryver told investigators he was sincere when he told Martin, the deputy who visited his home, that he did not plan to hurt himself or others. However, when the deputy left his house, he changed his mind and "set out a plan to end his life," the report said. He also noted that he periodically uses illegal pain medication and drinks alcohol in excess.

"Schryver regretted his decisions, especially placing Foradas in this position, and apologized," the report said. "Schryver never intended to hurt Foradas."

Schryver's nephew, Richard Major, whose father owns the house on Feather Street where Schryver was living, told investigators his uncle was depressed because he was without a job. Major's father was in the process of moving at the time of the shooting, the report said, and Schryver was worried about finding a new place to live.

"Schryver has told Major on a daily basis he was going to commit 'suicide by cop,'" the report said. "At approximately 12:34 (p.m.), Schryver called Major ... saying goodbye and stating he was 'going to do it.'"

Contact Megan Reeves at mreeves@tampabay.com. Follow @mareevs.