Officers shoot, kill man who gunned down 20-year-old mother at work

Two people are dead after domestic violence led to an officer shooting outside Spectrum off U.S. 92 in Auburndale on July 10.

Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said the first 911 call was received about 9:12 a.m. July 10 reporting a possible suicide in Spectrum's parking lot. Auburndale police officers and Polk deputies rushed to the scene as 911 calls continued to flood in saying shots were still being fired.

Five Auburndale police officers and two Polk deputies arrived to find a 20-year-old Lake Wales woman lying on the ground, Judd said, and it was "painfully evident" she had suffered serious injuries. Her identity has not been released under Florida's Marsy's Law, which shields the identity of victims.

The responding officers quickly turned their attention to 39-year-old Derrick Byathrite, who Judd said was injured, laying on the ground, and holding a firearm.

Byathrite was playing with the handle of the gun, said Auburndale Police Chief Terry Storie, possibly in an attempt to fix some kind of malfunction. As officers and deputies approached, Storie said, Byathrite pointed the firearm at them.

Judd said all of the officers shot at Byathrite. The exact number of rounds fired was not immediately known.

Then officers attempted unsuccessfully to provide life-saving measures to the woman and Byathrite, who both died of their gunshot wounds. No officers or deputies were injured.

The 10th Judicial Circuit's Officer Involved Deadly Incident Task Force is reviewing video footage from Spectrum and other neighboring buildings, according to Judd. There is no body camera footage available, as neither the Auburndale Police Department nor the Polk County Sheriff's Office utilize the equipment.

"We don't know the details of why the conflict occurred and there's an active investigation at this time," Judd said.

Byathrite and the woman were a couple in an "on-again, off-again" relationship and have a 3-year-old boy together, according to Judd. There has been one witness interviewed who said Byathrite threatened the woman with the words "I'm going to kill you," Judd said.

The woman had dropped the child off at Byathrite's parents house in Waverly early on July 10 before heading to work in Auburndale. Byathrite shot the woman as soon as she got out of her vehicle in Spectrum's parking lot.

Judd said he cannot release the names of the deputies and officers involved in the shooting pursuant to updates to Florida's Marsy's Law that went into effect July 1. The names of law enforcement officers involved in a shooting now are not made public for at least 72 hours.

All officers and deputies involved will be placed on paid administrative leave while the investigation is underway, according to Judd, and will undergo a mental health screening before returning to full duty.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Officers shoot, kill man who gunned down 20-year-old mother at work

Reporting by Sara-Megan Walsh, Lakeland Ledger / The Ledger

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This story was originally published July 13, 2026 at 11:33 AM.