4 Miami Beach Police Officers Relieved Of Duty Over Use Of Force Following Arrest
MIAMI (CBSMiami) – Four Miami Beach police officers have been relieved of duty.
It stems from a dangerous chain of events that started at 9 Street and Ocean Court at 1:20 a.m. Monday.
Officers approached a man who illegally parked a scooter.
That man, later identified as 24-year-old Dalonta Crudup, took off and hit an officer with the scooter. He reportedly tried to hit another officer but missed.
After driving on sidewalks, Crudup started running and was caught in the lobby of the Royal Palm Hotel.
Khalid Vaughn, who was not involved in the Crudup incident, was also arrested in the hotel lobby as he was recording Crudup's arrest on his phone.
Monday night, Chief Richard Clements said he has serious concerns about the use of force by his officers.
"I reviewed the video footage regarding this incident, and I have serious concerns about the force utilized after Mr. Crudup was in custody, including the level of force utilized in the subsequent arrest of Mr. Vaughn. This is not indicative of the hard-working men and women of the Miami Beach Police Department and will not be tolerated," said Clements in a statement.
Clements said he asked the state attorney's office to label the charges against Vaughn as "no action."
A decision about what happens next to the four officers who were relieved of duty depends on the results of an internal investigation and whether the state attorney's office will want to take action.