Miami-Dade Police Director Freddy Ramirez shot himself before his wife made frantic call to 911
MIAMI - Audio of the 911 call made the night that Miami-Dade Police Director Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez shot himself in the head along the side of the road has been released.
CBS News Miami obtained the full 911 call made by his wife to the Hillsborough County Fire Rescue,
The conversation appears to take place through a speaker system in the SUV.
During the call the woman, Ramirez's wife, Jody, is heard saying that at one point he ran into traffic as was resisting her efforts to treat his wound on the side of the road. She frantically asks for help.
Operator: Ma'am, can you hear me?
Woman: Yes I can, but please help me.
Operator: Okay, listen, I need you to take a deep breath. Tell me what happened. I need you to pick up the phone ma'am.
Woman: I don't have the phone. He's on the car. I don't know where his phone is.
Operator: Okay, well I need you to talk to me so we could try to help him. Where is he now?
Woman: He's in the grass on the side of the road.
Operator: Okay, Is he awake?
Woman: Yes, please help me. Please help me now.
Operator: Ma'am we already have we already have help dispatched. I need you to listen to me so we can help him. Where's the gun?
Woman: It's still in the car.
Operator: Okay, I need you to get a clean dry cloth or towel or a t-shirt or something so we can put it on the wound and then try to control the bleeding.
Woman: (inaudible)
Operator: Okay, well if it's, I want you to I want to make sure you stay safe. So if it's going to cause you problems, you need to get away from him.
Woman: I am safe, he needs help.
Operator: They're already ma'am. They're already on the way there. It's only been four minutes.
The shooting took place July 23 as the director and his wife were headed back to Miami on I-75 after a prior heated argument at a Tampa hotel.
Ramirez and his wife were in Tampa for the summer meeting of Florida's Sheriff Association, which began on Sunday at the JW Marriot Hotel. The couple left the welcome reception for the conference at around 6:30 p.m. and went outside the hotel where an argument allegedly ensued.
According to the law enforcement source, a passerby claimed to have seen Ramirez threatening to kill himself.
The police were called and the couple was asked to leave the hotel. Ramirez was in his car with his wife when he pulled over by the side of the road along Interstate 75 and shot himself, according to two law enforcement sources.
The 911 call appears to have happened shortly after the shooting. He was somehow able to walk around because the woman on the phone is scared when she saw Ramirez walking into traffic.
Ramirez remains at a Tampa hospital recovering from his injuries.
The director announced two months ago that he would run for sheriff next year as a Democrat.
He was named police director in 2020 under former Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez.
Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava elevated Ramirez two years later so he could oversee the police department and Miami-Dade Fire Rescue as interim chief of public safety. He was later given the position permanently.
*Editor's Note: CBS News Miami, after listening to the 911 call, has decided at this juncture to not broadcast the call on air. The call does reveal that Ramirez resisted his wife's attempts to help him following the shooting. We are providing an edited excerpt online only for those who want to listen to a portion of the call at their own discretion.
Tampa Police Department - Freddy Ramirez report: