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Ocala
Friday, March 29, 2024

Ocala man who caused three-vehicle crash while being chased by Marion County sheriff’s deputies identified

Michael Douglas Bishop
Michael Douglas Bishop

The Ocala man who caused a three-vehicle crash Wednesday while being pursued by Marion County sheriff’s deputies has been identified.

Michael Douglas Bishop, 29, was being pursued after a woman told sheriff’s deputies he grabbed her by the hair and slapped her with the back of his hand. The victim attempted to get out of Bishop’s vehicle but he pulled her hair and threw her onto her back, a sheriff’s office report states.

The victim said Bishop got on top of her, put his hands around her neck and started choking her. She said she pretended to be dead and Bishop got up and left. She then called for help, the report says.

Sheriff’s deputies along with the crew of Air-One, the sheriff’s office’s helicopter, started searching for Bishop and located him a short time later driving southbound on S.W. 60th Avenue. Deputies activated their emergency lights in an attempt to conduct a traffic stop but Bishop fled from them down W. Hwy. 40 at a high rate of speed. He ran through a red light and crashed into another vehicle, the report says. Debris from the crash also struck a third vehicle.

Bishop was transported to a local hospital in critical condition and the three occupants of the vehicle he collided with were transported to area hospitals with minor injuries. The Florida Highway Patrol is continuing to investigate the crash.

Bishop, who has been arrested before due to violent behavior, was charged with domestic battery by strangulation and aggravated fleeing with injury or damage. He was being held on no bond and his next court date hasn’t yet been set, jail records show.