Miami police captain and former police union president Javier Ortiz was reinstated this week after a yearlong suspension. Ortiz was relieved of duty in January 2020 while an outside law-enforcement agency investigated him for alleged misconduct, but those investigations were recently closed with no charges filed against the police captain.
Ortiz and his attorney told
New Times that he had been exonerated and had returned to work at the Miami Police Department (MPD). MPD spokesperson Kenia Fallat confirmed that Ortiz has been cleared of all criminal wrongdoing and is in the process of returning to full-duty uniform status.
The MPD has not revealed the nature of the criminal allegations against Ortiz, but the
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Photos via Miami Civilian Investigative Panel
Lopez sent the CIP photos of her bruised arm and swollen wrist, and the panel ultimately sustained the allegations of excessive force and improper procedure against Ortiz, recommending that the MPD discipline him accordingly. The MPD responded to the CIP s findings by saying the panel had insufficient evidence to prove Lopez s claims; the police department closed the investigation last March.
Lopez then sued the city and Ortiz in federal court, accusing the officer of excessive force and the city of deliberate indifference to Ortiz s many alleged acts of misconduct.
Ortiz s attorneys denied all of the allegations against him and claimed that any injury Lopez sustained was due to her own negligence or criminal conduct, according to court documents. The city also denied all allegations and claimed it was immune from the conduct of its employee, Ortiz.
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