Miami Police Chief Defends Department In Shootings
MIAMI (CBS4) -- Miami Police Chief Miguel Exposito has responded to a report evaluating his department and said the department acted properly in a series of seven controversial officer-involved shootings in seven months.
In his 11-page response to an evaluation by Paul Philip, the FBI's former head of the Miami office, Exposito defended the department's actions and also reiterated existing policy.
In a comment about why so few details had been released in the shootings, Exposito wrote, "There are times when [the department] must balance the public's right to be informed and its responsibility to avoid compromising an investigation…,"
On the quick return to duty of an officer who shot and killed two men in nine days, and who was later imprisoned for stealing Bluetooth devices: "The current policy requires officers involved in police shootings to 'be assigned to administrative duties for a minimum of three days.' "
Philip's report was released earlier this month after a four month investigation. Philip was hired to evaluate the city's embattled police department but the report raised more questions than it answered. Philip wondered if officers had received proper firearm training, if officers collaborating with federal agents were working together properly, and if the department had taken measures to address questions from families of the men killed by police.
Exposito's response, however, suggested the department's public stature had risen: "… It bears repeating that overall, citizen complaints against our officers declined by 22.4 percent in 2010, when compared to the previous year.''
An almost year-long string of events left the mayor, a commissioner and some residents calling for the chief's resignation and major changes to the department.
A civil investigative panel has been denied records on the first of the seven shootings. Congresswoman Fredrica Wilson has also asked the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate the shootings.
(©2011 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. CBS4 news partner The Miami Herald contributed material for this report)
