Exclusive: Miami-Dade PBA Says Profanity-Laced Tirade Against Police Is "Repulsive"
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DORAL (CBSMiami) – The President of the Miami-Dade Police Benevolent Association (P.B.A.) says new video showing a man's profanity-laced tirade against Florida City and Miami-Dade Police is "repulsive" and "disgraceful."
The 7-minute video obtained by CBS4 shows the man being relentless as he repeatedly insults officers and swears at them.
It happens as tensions are high as cops investigate a shooting by a Florida City Police officer.
The officer shot 23-year-old Juvon Simon, who police say was armed with a weapon.
In the video, the officers stand impassively as they listen to a barrage of curse words.
"It is repulsive and it is disgraceful," said P.B.A. President Steadman Stahl, who has been a police officer for 29 years and who served with the Homestead Police Department from 1989 to 1997 and who joined Miami-Dade Police in 1997, serving as a Sergeant until he was elected President of the P.B.A.
The P.B.A. Represents Florida City and Miami-Dade Police.
Stahl told CBS4'S Peter D'Oench "This is a disgusting thing that police had to put up with out there. This was a textbook case of trying to draw them offside and try to agitate into something that didn't need to escalate to that. These officers were incredible. They showed great restraint when this agitator was trying to draw them into a situation that would be viewed negatively.
"It's a powder keg already with the situation and the shooting that had taken place out there where he was trying to agitate the crowd. For me this came very close for something terrible that could have happened. This subject should have been arrested."
Stahl added, "They're making threats. You can hear people in the background saying I'm going to get a scope out there and we are going to call you guys out. And I believe the F.B.I. had put out a notice at the height of the tension that threats were being made against police. There is one thing to have freedom of speech but when they incite others to break the law that is dangerous."
D'Oench also spoke with Simon's relatives at the scene of the police involved shooting at Northwest 14th Street and Northwest 2nd Avenue.
They said the new video illustrated unhappiness with police and the incident itself.
Levy Simon, the father of the man who was shot, said "What we get from them they deserve. They want peace but I don't appreciate what happened. The police crossed the line at my house and shot him when he was behind the door."
Jimmilla Cade, the aunt of Juvon Simon, said, "The police swear at us. What is the difference? We can't swear at them because they are police?"
She said of the man on the video, "I think his behavior was justified. I mean it was because of police that this young man is dead now. So we have no reason to be on the police side."
Wayne Ross, the uncle of Juvon Simon, said "It's all out of anger. It's all out of anger. What would anyone expect if you shoot a kid through a door and kill him. How is that justified? So we have a young man expressing how he feels about a terrible situation."
The shooting is being investigated by the FDLE.
Miami-Dade Police said they had recovered a weapon and said a preliminary investigation revealed that Simon was armed. Records show he had been arrested before for a number of charges including aggravated assault with a firearm.
The man in the video obtained by CBS4 has not been arrested or identified.
Police say you are usually not arrested for swearing at police but you can face a number of charges in such situations including disorderly conduct.
Miami-Dade Police are not commenting about the man's conduct that was captured on camera.
Florida City's Police Chief told CBS4 the incident was being investigated.
