Body Cam Video Released Of Miami-Dade Officer's 'Rough' Take Down Of Distraught Woman
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) - Miami-Dade police have released the body cam video of a controversial arrest that was caught on camera.
The body cam video shows the emotions and the tension in the moments before the arrest was made.
On March 5th, Dyma Loving called the police after she said she and her friend Adrianna Green were threatened by Frank Tumm, who pointed a gun at them, as they walked by his home in the 1300 block of SW 201st Street.
On the body cam video, Loving is repeatedly told by Miami-Dade police officers to calm down. "You need to chill out," says one officer. "You need to chill out because now you can be arrested. You are being disorderly right now and you can be arrested. I am going to give you one more chance."
Loving says she is "calm" and says "I just want to go to talk to my kids." Then you hear her repeatedly screaming on the tape, "Don't touch me. Don't touch me. Don't touch me." And you see a different angle on how she is taken down to the ground.
"Why am I going to be arrested when I was just threatened and I need to talk to my daughter on the phone?" She asks.
When police arrived, they interviewed Tumm and both of the women. The body cam video shows a very brief interview with Tumm who is asked about what he heard and saw but it not questioned about allegedly brandishing a weapon.
Body cam video of field training Officer A.I. Giraldo shows officers telling a very upset Loving to calm down.
"You need to do something. You need to chill out," an officer can be heard telling Loving. I am asking you to chill out You are going to be arrested. You are going to be arrested. You need to calm down. We are going to bring you in."
"I'm calm. I just want to talk to my kids," she replied.
There is then another warning.
"You're screaming and you are acting disorderly. You will be arrested, okay, calm down," said an officer.
"Why do I need to be arrested, I want to charge my phone," said Loving.
An incident report states when she "became belligerent and would not obey commands," they moved in to restrain her.
Loving can repeatedly be heard saying, "do not touch me, do not touch me."
When Giraldo tried to handcuff her and she resisted, he put both arms around her head and dragged her to the ground.
Loving was arrested and charged with resisting arrest without violence and disorderly conduct.
A cellphone video of the arrest was put on social media. After viewing it, Miami-Dade Police Director Juan Perez said in a statement the officer's actions were "troubling."
"I find the actions depicted on the video deeply troubling and in no way reflective of our core values of integrity, respect, service, and fairness. This is why last week, upon becoming aware of the video posted on social media, an immediate inquiry was initiated which resulted in the involved officer being relieved of duty and of his role as a field training officer."
"There was no reason for him to get physical with me. I have freedom of speech," said Loving. "It made me feel like trash."
The Dade County Police Benevolent Association said in a statement that the officers involved were justified in their actions because Loving was uncooperative and refused to comply with orders that police were giving her.
Loving told CBS4's Peter D'Oench that, "I am a single mother of three struggling to get by. I am going to hire an attorney and I want an apology and may sue."
Tumm was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Tumm was released from jail Friday afternoon after posting bond and continued to claim that he never brandished a weapon.
On Friday afternoon, civil rights attorney Justin A. Moore told D'Oench that Loving has hired him and he said he will pursue a federal civil rights claim against Frank Tumm and Officer Alejandro Giraldo.
Moore says Dyma told 911 that Tumm, who is white, threatened her with a gun and told her that he would "shoot (her) burnt black-ass face off (her) neck." Moore says Loving was assaulted by Giraldo "while he was encouraged by the other officers who were present."
Moore said the incident "clearly expresses a complete lack of training and supervision of the officers who responded to Dyma's request for police protection." Moore said "Giralso needs to be unequivocally terminated from any employment net capacity at Miami-Dade PD and he, along with Frank Tumm
