News 3 has not independently confirmed the statements made by Taylor in his jailhouse interview. The views expressed in this interview are Taylor's alone.
NORFOLK, Va. — A man accused of shooting at Norfolk May 24 police officers before they returned fire claims he did not shoot at officers.
News 3 reporter Angela Bohon interviewed Markell Taylor, 25, at the Norfolk City Jail on Friday, where he sat handcuffed and in a wheelchair.
WATCH FULL INTERVIEW: Markell Taylor
Taylor is charged with assault on law enforcement officers. The charge stems from a May 24 incident, in which police officers approached Taylor on Bagnall Road that night. That’s according to the Norfolk Police Department.
Police say they were pursuing Taylor due to an outstanding warrant for his arrest. When officers approached him, police say he ran and shot at them, prompting them to fire back.
One officer had minor injuries following the incident, police say. He was treated and released at the hospital that night.
Watch: Norfolk police shoot man on Bagnall Road
Taylor was hit by gunfire. He says he was shot in the back, stomach, and the leg.
“I was telling them, ‘I’m bleeding out. Come help me. I’m shot'," Taylor told Bohon Friday. "And they was just… it was like they didn’t care.”
“When [the officer] finally got over there, the officer actually kicked me. He actually kicked me to make me turn around as I was on the ground. Another officer was standing on my leg. The same leg he just shot me in.”
On Wednesday, a judge denied Taylor’s bond request. During that hearing, Taylor's attorney, Amina Matheny-Willard, argued that the case is one of "bad intel and police brutality."
Watch: Norfolk Police investigating Bagnall Road shooting
Matheny-Willard argued that footage from body cameras worn by officers supported her claim. News 3 reporter Erika Craven was there. She said during court, it was hard to see on the bodycam video what happened when the first shots were fired.
Police claim Taylor turned over his shoulder and shot at them before they returned fire.
On Friday during the interview at the jail, Bohon asked Taylor, “Did you shoot at officers?”
He responded, “No, ma’am.”
She asked, “Did you have a gun on you that night? Taylor answered, “No, ma’am.”
Norfolk's Commonwealth's Attorney Ramin Fatehi released the following statement Friday afternoon:
The police department consulted me regarding charging Mr. Taylor with shooting at the police. Based on my review of the facts and evidence and my having been at the scene the night of this incident, I recommended that the police charge Mr. Taylor. An independent magistrate found probable cause to charge Mr. Taylor. The evidence presented at Mr. Taylor’s bail hearing included body camera footage and other evidence that establish that he shot at the police, who then returned fire and wounded Mr. Taylor. The evidence at the bail hearing also included that the police recovered a gun that Mr. Taylor had dropped after firing at them. Out of respect for Mr. Taylor’s right to a fair trial, I cannot comment on the facts of this case beyond what we have said in court. I look forward to the trial of this case, where we expect our evidence to establish Mr. Taylor’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Taylor is expected to be in court related to the Bagnall incident charges, on October 29.
