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ACLU and City of Miami Settle Wrongful Death Lawsuit on Behalf of Homeless Veteran Killed by Miami Police
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
March 14, 2005
CONTACT:
Kimberly Lavender at 305-576-2337, ext. 16
MIAMI –The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Florida, Greater Miami Chapter, and the City of Miami settled the lawsuit filed by the ACLU against the City of Miami, former Police Chief Raul Martinez, and Officer Hector Mendez for the death of Richard Wayne Beatty, a 55-year-old mentally ill homeless veteran who was shot multiple times and killed on June 6, 2001 by police.
The ACLU filed suit in federal court claiming the Miami Police Department was responsible for the wrongful death of Beatty and violations of the 4th and 14th Amendments of the United States Constitution and the laws of Florida. The suit addressed the fact that there were no Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) officers on duty at the time of the incident and none of the officers at the scene of the crime were equipped with non-lethal means to subdue a mentally ill individual. CIT officers are trained to deal with the mentally ill to prevent injury and potential death to both the police officers and those being arrested.
“This tragic killing at the hands of Miami police, led to a policy change in how the department deals with the mentally ill” said ACLU of Florida staff attorney Rosalind Matos and ACLU Cooperating attorney Gregory Samms. "Beatty suffered from a debilitating mental illness. He should have been apprehended and brought into custody with reasonable care, but instead he paid with his life.”
On June 6, 2001, Beatty was suffering a delusional episode and causing a disturbance by using a pocketknife to keep police officers at bay. City of Miami police officers said they tried “everything in their power” to persuade Beatty to drop the pocketknife. When Beatty allegedly “lunged” at Officer Mendez, he fired his .40-caliber semi-automatic weapon, firing 17 bullets at Beatty and hitting him 13 times. It all happened before another squad of officers carrying riot shields could have prevented the shots from being fired. The Vietnam War veteran, who lived on the streets, was killed instantly.
According to the Florida Department of Children and Families, the City of Miami has more mentally disturbed people living on the streets than any city in America. Also, officers with the Miami Police Department were found to be “some of the most aggressive shooters in the nation,” according to a 2000 Miami Herald investigation.
The Miami City Commission approved the settlement of $400,000 on Thursday March 10, 2005 to the estate of Mr. Beatty, including his daughter Kimberly Duff of Tennessee.
The case was handled by ACLU Cooperating Attorney Gregory Samms and ACLU South Florida Staff Counsel Rosalind Matos.
