Polk Deputy Shoots Woman Accused Of Threatening Ex-Boyfriend

WINTER HAVEN, FL -- The Polk County Sheriff's Office says a deputy shot a Kissimmee woman as she ran toward her ex-boyfriend with a butcher knife in her hand.

Lindsay Collins, 25, is in stable but serious condition following emergency surgery for a gunshot wound to the chest at Lakeland Regional Health.

According to Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd, the sheriff's office received a call around 10:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 25, from Winter Haven resident Chris Ingram, 36, who said his former girlfriend was in his house on 16th Street Northeast and was behaving irrationally.

Ingram told deputies that he broke up with Collins a few weeks ago and she'd been harassing him with threatening text messages. At one point, she even rammed his pickup truck with her car, he said.

Ingram said Collins arrived unexpectedly at his house Tuesday night. He said she seemed intoxicated and her behavior was erratic.

"She arrived in a jealous rage, totally out of control," said Judd. "She started stripping the sheets off Chris' bed and put a belt around her neck."

When Ingram took the belt away from Collins so she wouldn't harm herself, he said she grabbed a butcher knife and chased his roommate out of the house with it. Ingram left the house behind his roommate and called 911.

When Deputy Sheriff Lance Turley, 30, a nine-year veteran of the sheriff's office, arrived, Ingram was waiting outside.

"Within less than a minute, Linday Collins sprints from the house through a dimly lit area and runs in front of the head lights of the patrol car," said Judd. "The deputy can see she's holding a knife over her head and is charging toward Chris."

The deputy shot his gun once. The bullet hit Collins' chest and she fell to the ground.

"The deputy provided life-saving measures and, in fact, saved her life," said Judd. "This was a very dangerous scene last night. If it weren't for the deputy intervening, Chris could have easily lost his life. Domestic violence is one of the most dangerous calls we respond to, and last night was no exception."

Judd said once Collins recovers she will be transferred to the Polk County detention infirmary where she will be charged with two counts of attempted first-degree murder, aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, felony criminal mischief and armed burglary.

Image via Polk Sheriff

(For more local news from Florida, click here to sign up for real-time news alerts and newsletters from Patch. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app; download the free Patch Android app here.)