State investigators are reviewing a trooper’s gunfire after authorities said a woman with a child in her vehicle stabbed him during a stop on SR 836.
MIAMI, Fla. — A young child was placed in state care after a Florida Highway Patrol trooper shot a woman whom investigators say stabbed him during a wrong-way driving stop early Sat., March 7, on State Road 836 in Miami-Dade County.
The incident now spans several official tracks at once. Highway patrol investigators are handling the violent encounter itself, child welfare authorities have taken custody of the child who was inside the vehicle, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement is conducting the standard outside review of the trooper’s use of force. Authorities also said the woman had active warrants for child neglect, child abuse and fleeing and eluding law enforcement, adding another layer to a case that already began with a dangerous driving report on a major Miami expressway.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol, the sequence began at about 5:30 a.m. when troopers were sent to State Road 836 after reports of a reckless driver traveling eastbound in the westbound lanes near NW 107th Avenue. Troopers later found the vehicle in the grassy center median. A trooper approached and made contact with the driver while a young child remained in the car, investigators said. During that interaction, the woman pulled a knife and stabbed the trooper in the head, neck and shoulder, according to FHP. The trooper then fired, striking the woman. Both were taken to HCA Kendall Trauma. FHP said the child was later removed from the scene and placed with the Department of Children and Families.
That child welfare step has become one of the most significant facts in the case, even as the shooting itself draws the most public attention. Officials have not identified the child, given an age or said whether the child witnessed the entire confrontation from inside the vehicle. They also have not said whether any other adult was expected to take custody. What they have said is that the child was alive, was not reported injured and was transferred to state care after the stop turned violent. The woman’s arrest status also remains tied to her medical condition. Authorities said she will be booked into the Miami-Dade County Jail once she is medically released, but they have not announced the full list of charges prosecutors may seek after the stabbing and shooting.
The reported active warrants deepen the case’s context because they suggest the stop did not involve only a sudden traffic emergency. FHP said investigators later determined that the woman was already wanted on allegations tied to child neglect, child abuse and fleeing and eluding law enforcement. Officials have not publicly detailed those prior allegations, including where they originated, whether they stem from one case or several, or how long they had been outstanding. Even so, the mention of those warrants places Saturday’s confrontation in a broader pattern of legal jeopardy. It also helps explain why the child’s placement with the Department of Children and Families quickly became part of the official response. For investigators, those records may help shape decisions about charges, custody and the timeline of what happened before dawn on SR 836.
Meanwhile, the review of the shooting itself is moving on a separate path. Officer-involved shootings in Florida typically trigger an outside examination of the force used, and FHP said the Florida Department of Law Enforcement is handling that step here. That process can include interviews, scene reconstruction, medical evidence, dispatch logs and any available camera footage. Authorities have not said whether the trooper wore a body camera, whether dash camera video exists or whether civilians saw the stabbing and gunfire from nearby lanes. They also have not released the number of rounds fired or the exact distance between the trooper and the woman when shots were fired. Those unanswered questions are central to the force review, but they are common in the early days of an active investigation when agencies release only a basic narrative.
The setting adds urgency to the public’s interest in the case. State Road 836, also known as the Dolphin Expressway, is a heavily traveled route through Miami-Dade County, and reports of a wrong-way vehicle can quickly become life-threatening. Yet this case moved from roadway danger to close-range violence after the vehicle had already stopped in the median. The sudden change is part of what makes the event unusual: a traffic stop that became a stabbing, a shooting, a jail case and a child custody matter within a short span. Public officials have offered only brief statements so far, and no family member, lawyer or independent witness had publicly filled in the gaps by late weekend. That leaves the state’s account as the main timeline for now while broader facts remain under review.
As of Monday, March 9, the woman remained set to be booked after medical release, the child remained in state care and FDLE’s review of the trooper’s gunfire was still active. The next concrete development is likely to come with jail records, court filings or a fuller statement from investigators.
Author note: Last updated March 9, 2026.