Prosecutors: No charges against man who shot at Pensacola police SWAT team
Prosecutors will not press charges against Corey Marioneaux Jr., a Pensacola man who fired a shot at a Pensacola Police Department SWAT team last month.
The State Attorney's Office announced its decision not to criminally prosecute Marioneaux via a news release late Wednesday afternoon.
"State Attorney Ginger Bowden Madden announces that after diligent investigation and review no criminal prosecution will be commenced against Corey Marioneaux Jr. for a shooting incident that occurred during the lawful execution of a search warrant at his residence on February 3rd, 2022," the release stated.
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Following the announcement, Marioneaux's attorneys — James Bryant, Carlos Moore, Rodney Diggs and Reganel Reeves — issued a joint statement praising the decision.
"We are pleased that prosecutors have opted to drop all charges against Corey Marioneaux, Jr. today," the statement said. "If officers with the Pensacola Police Dept. had simply taken a moment to fully evaluate the situation, he wouldn't have been arrested in the first place. Mr. Marioneaux is completely innocent and deserves to have his record cleared and good name restored."
Marioneaux was charged with attempted murder of a law enforcement officer Feb. 3 after he fired a single bullet at a PPD SWAT team member who entered his home in the 2500 block of North Seventh Avenue to execute a search warrant.
According to police, the SWAT team entered Marioneaux's home searching for physical evidence related to a Jan. 22 shooting in downtown Pensacola in which two people were injured.
After the SWAT team entered the dwelling, Marioneaux fired a bullet that struck an officer's ballistic shield, an arrest report said.
A detective returned fire at Marioneaux. No one was injured in the incident before Marioneaux put down his weapon and surrendered to officers.
"While being taken into custody, Marioneaux made spontaneous statements in the presence of (a detective) that he was sorry," the arrest report stated. "Marioneaux also made spontaneous statement in front of (a sergeant) that he was sorry for shooting at officers."
In the weeks since the incident, Marioneaux's attorneys have publicly argued their client had not known at whom exactly he was shooting when he fired the weapon toward police on the night of the search warrant. An attorney for the family said Marioneaux had mistaken the officers as potentially dangerous people who were breaking into his home.
The State Attorney’s Office ended up making a similar assessment of the circumstances.
"Careful review of the case has determined that there is insufficient proof to establish beyond a reasonable doubt that Marioneaux knew that he was firing at a police officer. Knowledge is an essential element of the offense," the State Attorney’s Office release stated.
The State Attorney’s Office release further explained prosecutors’ decision not to pursue charges by stating the following:
“Knowledge is an essential element of the offense. The evidence would show that Marioneaux fired the shot at the exact moment the door burst open. Under the unique set of circumstances, he did not have adequate time to perceive and appreciate that it was a uniformed police officer equipped with a ballistic shield on the other side of the door. The manner in which he repudiated his intent to fire upon a police officer substantiates his claim that he did not know it was the police when he fired the shot.”
After Marioneaux was taken into custody on night the incident of the incident, his sons — Cylen, 1, and Caion, 3 — were placed in the care of the PPD until their mother — 24-year-old Moiya Dixon — was called to pick them up.
While in the care of police, Marioneaux and Dixon's youngest son, Cylen, fell out of the backseat of a PPD vehicle, injuring his face.
Earlier this month, a team of lawyers representing Marioneaux and his family announced plans to sue the PPD in civil court for the injuries Cylen endured while in police care.
In a joint statement Wednesday, the team of lawyers wrote, "We are now focused on getting to the bottom of exactly how Mr. Marioneaux's one-year-old baby boy was dropped on his head and seriously injured during this botched raid.
"Our hope is that the Pensacola Police Dept. will quickly provide accurate information regarding how and why this occurred. We will not stop until this information has been made public and those responsible for this horrific series of events are held accountable."
Colin Warren-Hicks can be reached at colinwarrenhicks@pnj.com or 850-435-8680.
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Corey Marioneaux: No charges filed in Pensacola police SWAT case
