Off-duty officer shoots two while being dragged by car Friday

An off-duty county police officer shot two men while being dragged by their car after an alleged shoplifting at Rugged Wearhouse Friday afternoon.

The two men have been identified as Jeffrey Bright, 23, of Baltimore and Rodney Bailey, 23, of Washington. Assistant District 1 Commander Capt. Daniel Lipsey said both men were in stable condition upon their arrival to area hospitals. The two men will likely be charged with theft and assault later today, he added.

At about 5:30 p.m. on Friday, the Prince George's County officer, who was working part time as a Rugged Wearhouse security guard and was in uniform, reportedly observed the suspects shoplifting. He followed them to their car in the College Park Shopping Center parking lot, where he confronted them, said Prince George's County Police spokeswoman Lt. Tammy Sparkman.

The situation escalated when the officer reached inside the driver's side window of the green sedan and one of the men rolled up the window, trapping the officer's arm, Sparkman said. The driver pulled out of the space, dragging the officer along as the two suspects tried to flee the scene.

Sparkman said the officer struggled to gain control of the vehicle by grabbing the steering wheel. As he was being dragged, he pulled out his gun and aimed it inside the car.

Shots were fired.

Saeed Alaei, a graduate student studying computer science, was in his car when the event unfolded. The officer fired three shots into the car, Alaei said. Then a window smashed as the man fell onto the pavement.

Then, the vehicle veered, striking a silver Toyota Rav4, Alaei said. After the crash, one of the suspects got out of the car and lay on the ground.

Lipsey said both men were wounded by the gunfire: Bright was shot in the head, and Bailey in the torso. Witnesses spotted blood stains on the passenger seat of the car — a Chevy Impala with Virginia license plates.

The officer received injuries to his hand, foot and back.

Senior journalism major Lianna Donovan was walking out of CVS with a friend when they saw the sedan had crashed into the Rav4 she had borrowed from her roommate. She saw the police officer lying on the ground calling for backup as more police cars were arriving on the scene.

"When I saw him, I thought, ‘Maybe I should back away,'" Donovan said.

At least 20 emergency vehicles had surrounded the shopping center by 5:45 p.m. The county police officer and the two suspects were taken to local hospitals where they were treated for their injuries, Sparkman said.

Initial reports indicated the suspects were women, but police have since identified Bright and Bailey as transgender; both were wearing women's clothes.

"We're still obviously investigating, but it appears they are transgender," Lipsey said. "As we get further into the investigation, we'll find out if this is their lifestyle — which we believe it is — or if it was a disguise."

Police marked off the area with caution tape and closed several businesses on the block temporarily, including Boston Market, Noodles & Company and Rugged Wearhouse.

Police are also still investigating whether Bright and Bailey were shoplifting, Sparkman said.

Though University Police officers were on the scene, spokesman Paul Dillon had no comment except to say county police were handling the investigation.

Staff writer Kara Estelle contributed to this report. kgoon@umdbk.com, rhodes@umdbk.com