TAMPA, Fla. — Eric Archield said he had some bumps and bruises but was otherwise doing well Monday evening after being hit by a car Sunday night.

Tampa Police said Archield was one of four victims of Jeremiah Bailey, 48.

What You Need To Know

  • Tampa Police said Jeremiah Bailey, 48, hit four men with his car Sunday night in four separate hit-and-run incidents

  • The first victim was Eric Archield, 47

  • Archield said he feels blessed to be alive after Bailey followed him from a Dollar General to a friend's house, then hit him with his car

  • Bailey was killed on I-275 N in a confrontation with police after leading officers on a chase 

  • PREVIOUS STORY: Tampa police kill suspect after fatal pedestrian crash and I-275 pursuit

"I'm blessed to be alive," said Archield. "When I got hit, it messed me up a little bit, but again, you know, the man upstairs, he didn't want me to go nowhere yet."

It started as a normal trip to Dollar General. Archield said when he left the store at Dale Mabry and Interbay Boulevard just after 8:30 p.m., a white Honda Accord was parked right next to his car in a mostly empty lot.

“I can’t even open my door. So, I walk up to him, and, of course, I said some choice words, and he never said one word. He just looked at me with a crazy look with a cigarette in his mouth,” Archield said.

Archield said the driver, who Tampa Police said was Bailey, eventually moved, but the encounter didn’t end when Archield left.

“See tail lights behind me. So, I turned the corner — still there. Turned this corner — still there. Turned this corner — still there,” Archield said.

He drove to a friend’s house nearby. Archield said Bailey followed him there, at one point waving a tennis racket and shouting at him and his friend before throwing a chair at them. He said his friend got his gun, and when Bailey drove towards them twice, he fired two shots.

“Once he let them shots off, that man didn’t move,” Archield said. “He shot, and that man didn’t go nowhere.”

Archield said Bailey kept driving up and down the street. At one point, he thought he hit his car.

“I walk and got, you know, side of my car, and that’s when he just gunned it at me. I got pinned between my car and sort of on the ground and cut my hand, flew in the air,” Archield said.

That’s when he said his friend fired more shots.

“When I was on the ground, if he didn’t do that, let shots off in the car, that man could have honestly ran right back over me just that quick.

Police said Bailey hit three more men after finally driving off, eventually leading officers in a chase onto I-275 N.

Video from TPD shows them stopping Bailey with a PIT maneuver. According to the department, officers told Bailey to show his hands multiple times. Seven officers shot at him after he appeared to reach for something, and Bailey was pronounced dead at the scene. No firearm was found in his car.

Archield said he knows the outcome could’ve been worse for him, and he’s grateful to be alive, especially for his 17-year-old son.

He also said he’s praying for the other victims and their families. Police said Jesse Rickett, 43, has serious head injuries, Timothy Harden, 41, was taken to the hospital for evaluation, and a third man not yet identified was killed.

TPD said the investigations into each hit and run are ongoing, and they’re looking into why Bailey did this.

FDLE is investigating the officer involved shooting. Seven officers have been placed on administrative leave, which the department said is standard procedure.