PORT ST. JOE — Police led the funeral procession Monday of a man who died in what state investigators have called an “officer-involved shooting.”
Jonathan Paul Pierce, 37, died Wednesday night in police custody, according to reports from the Port St. Joe Police Department. While officers confirmed Monday that Pierce, a Port St. Joe resident, was the victim of an officer-related incident, several details have yet to be released in connection with his death.
Most, if not all, of Port St. Joe’s police force — including Chief Matt Herring — was on hand for Pierce’s funeral at the First Baptist Church of Port St. Joe on Monday. Patrol cars from the Gulf Coast Sheriff’s Office also were parked among the large congregation, gathered to commemorate Pierce’s life.
However, most of the details surrounding his unexpected death have been left to speculation. So far Port St. Joe Police have released a statement that they arrested a local man Wednesday and transported him to the station. At 7:39 p.m. EST, the man died while in police custody, according to officials, but they did not release the man’s identity.
The Port St. Joe Police Department requested the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) to investigate the death. FDLE has said the case is being investigated as an “officer involved in a shooting,” but further details had not been released as the agency’s investigation continues.
FDLE officials said Monday details of their investigation — including where, when or which officers were present at the time of Pierce’s death — were still unavailable.
Pierce and his family had longstanding ties in the Port St. Joe community. He was a member of the marching band, football team and on the first Port St. Joe High School state championship track team before graduating in 1995.
Pierce attended Gulf Coast Community College, where he studied electronics and was employed at FairPoint Communications, a local telephone company. He was a member of First Baptist Church. His mother, Charlotte Maddox Pierce, is Port St. Joe’s auditor/clerk, according to the city’s website.