Counting 'em Down: For better or for worse, this is the Headline Surfer countdown of 2021's Top 100 biggest news stories of Central Florida along the tourism-driven stretch of Interstate 4 (Orlando Attractions and east to I-95 & the World's Most Famous Beach in Daytona). Each recap segment is posted with its own headline, culminating with the unveiling of No. 1, before switching to the Top 5 storylines -- the good, the bad & the ugly on the horizon in "2022: The Year That Lies Ahead."
Photos for Headline Surfer / ABOVE: Screenshots from surveillance video outside the Flagler Tavern bar in New Smyrna Beach show then-off-duty Daytona Beach cop Shane P. Jackson, holding a knife in his right hand (at left) and a close-up of the knife in his hand (right). BELOW: DBPD cop Shane P. Jackson in 2018 pic, and in a screenshot from surveillance video from the front of the Flagler Tavern with the knife in his hand.
By HENRY FREDERICK / Headline Surfer
NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. -- Daytona Beach Police Chief Jakari Young moved swiftly and without hesitation in terminating a cop who was off-duty when he allegedly stabbed another bar patron and got himself arrested less than 48 hours earlier.
With Shane P. Jackson, 50, being held without bail at the Volusia County Jail in Daytona Beach on an aggravated battery charge following the alleged stabbing of a 24-year-old man in critical condition at Halifax Health Hospital, the police chief released a statement to Headline Surfer and other media outlets via email media alert as follows:
"Upon reviewing the evidence made available to me of this incident, I will not tolerate the violent criminal actions that I witnessed from any member of this department. Shane Jackson has been terminated from employment with the Daytona Beach Police Department immediately."
With Shane P. Jackson, 50, being held without bail at the Volusia County Jail in Daytona Beach on an aggravated battery charge following the alleged stabbing of a 24-year-old man in critical condition at Halifax Health Hospital, the police chief released a statement to Headline Surfer and other media outlets via email media alert as follows: "Upon reviewing the evidence made available to me of this incident, I will not tolerate the violent criminal actions that I witnessed from any member of this department. Shane Jackson has been terminated from employment with the Daytona Beach Police Department immediately."
Jackson, a Daytona Beach cop since 2017, was so intoxicated when New Smyrna Beach cops took him into custody following the 11:15 p.m. near-fatal stabbing that they had to wait until the next day to interview him.
Here is a synopsis of what occurred on March 10, 2021, as described in the New Smyrna Beach arrest affidavit: Witnesses saw Jackson and another male patron inside at Tayton O'Brians on Flagler Avenue involved in a physical altercation on the dance floor, and both were ordered by the bouncers to leave.
The altercation then spilled over between the two men in front of the Flagler Tavern next door in front of a half dozen or so other patrons.
That's when Jackson, allegedly brandishing a knife in his right hand, stabbed the other man in the upper stomach area. And Jackson was tackled by several bouncers.
The victim, 24-year-old Jarrett Stadtler, was transported to Halifax Hospital in Daytona Beach as a "trauma alert and underwent emergency surgery for the stab wound, which he survived.
New Smyrna Beach Police spoke to several eyewitnesses in the initial confrontation and the near-fatal killing that followed.
Taylor Morgan, 21, told NSB cops on scene that Jackson was dancing behind her at close proximity and touching her against her will, leading to her reaching out to her friend, Stadtler, who stepped in between her and Jackson and the two began fighting which led to both being ordered to leave by the bouncers.
After a few minutes, words were exchanged and the two men went at it again about 11:15 p.m. and it escalated when Jackson pulled out the knife and plunged it into Stadtler's upper torso, New Smyrna Beach police said. Jackson tried to leave the scene but was grabbed by several bouncers and detained until cops responded to several 9-1-1 calls within minutes of the stabbing.
New Smyrna Beach cops recovered the knife, which had the victim's blood on it.
Shane P. Jackson, 50, is accused of stabbing a 24-year-old man outside a bar during a scuffle while he was off duty.
Upon further review of the video surveillance, investigators determined that probable cause existed to charge Jackson with aggravated battery resulting in serious bodily injury.
Criminal Case Update:
Shane P.Jackson (DOB: 11-15-1970), was released on bond within days of his arrest. Jackson is scheduled for a pre-trial hearing on April 7, 2022, before Circuit Judge Leah Case at the Justice Center in Daytona Beach. Jackson faces up to 15 years in state prison if convicted at trial of the felony charge of aggravated battery causing great bodily harm with a weapon.
About the Byline Writer: Henry Frederick is a member of the working press and publisher of Headline Surfer, the award-winning 24/7 internet news outlet launched in 2008, that serves greater Daytona Beach, Sanford & Orlando from Lake Mary, Florida via HeadlineSurfer.com. Frederick has amassed close to 150 award-winning bylines in print & online. He earned his Master of Arts in New Media Journalism from Full Sail University in 2019. He was a breaking news reporter (metro cops & courts beat) for the Daytona Beach News-Journal for nearly a decade. And Before that worked the same beat for The Journal-News/Gannett Suburban Newspapers in Rockland/Westchester counties, NY, dating back to 1989. Having witnessed the execution of serial killer Aileen Wuornos in Florida's death chamber and covering other high profile cases, Frederick has appeared on national crime documentary shows on Discovery ID, Reelz, and the Oxygen Network series "Snapped" for his analysis. • Award-Winning Journalism: Florida Press Club recognizes Headline Surfer for nine stories in 2020 statewide competition. • Award-Winning Journalism of Henry Frederick.