A former Marco Island Police officer accused of firing an airsoft gun at a minor in his care was acquitted of all charges after a two-day trial. John Derrig, 41, of Lehigh Acres, faced one count of aggravated child abuse involving malicious punishment and one count of child abuse. According to court documents, on Feb. The documents said a teen called and reported Derrig had beaten her before she left the home to call for help. Derrig told sheriff's deputies the child "was having behavior issues," acting out at home and at school and that he he initially instructed the teen to give him all her sneakers.
Derrig claimed she started to hit him. Missing child found: Fort Myers Police find missing child after Amber Alert; search for accused continues.
The former Marco Island Police officer said she started to hit him, and he restrained her. Once restrained, Derrig said, the teen started to kick Derrig, who grabbed her and pulled her across the floor. According to authorities, Derrig stated an adult woman in the home "started throwing things around the residence" and that the teen punched him in the face.
At a later date, Derrig made a comment indicating he used an airsoft gun during one of the disputes. The report states that Derrig's mother-in-law accused the former police officer of shooting the teen with a BB gun, to which Derrig later replied that "everyone was shot with BB guns. In court, defense attorney Donald Day questioned how the reporting sheriff's deputy confused a BB gun with an airsoft gun.
Mediation records indicate that on the night of May 23, , Marco Island Police superiors determined Derrig failed to respond to a medical call โ his fifth within two weeks โ and ordered that Derrig respond to all future medical calls. Records indicate on that day his patrol car was parked, his engine idling, for three hours. Between May 27 and June 2 of that year he failed to act on four additional calls.
