‘It’s time.’ Miami-Dade police director Juan Perez will retire in January.
After a career of almost 30 years with Miami-Dade police — four of them as director — Juan Perez is stepping down in January, Perez announced Friday.
“My family and I have decided that the time has come to move on to the next chapter of our lives,” he shared on Twitter. “As such, I wanted to take this opportunity to sincerely thank you for the opportunity to serve this wonderful community for the last 29 1/2 years, with the last four years being highlighted as your police director.”
Perez, who turns 52 in January, said Friday he just felt “it’s time.” His last day leading the largest police agency in the southeastern U.S. will be Jan. 12.
The end of his five years in DROP, the state’s deferred-retirement program, would have been in June 2020.
The DROP program allows municipal and state employees across Florida to accumulate pension payments for up to five years while they are still working. Perez was already in the program when he was sworn in as director in February 2016.
The son of Cuban immigrants, Perez graduated from Southridge High School and attended Miami Dade College and Florida International University while working in the loss prevention department at Burdines.
Perez eventually graduated from St. Thomas University with a degree in organizational leadership. He landed his first job with Miami-Dade Police Department in 1990.
He started his police career working patrol in the north end of the county. Through the years, he worked in public housing in the midwest district, in the robbery unit and for the department’s Homeland Security section.
His first leadership role came in April 2007, when he was put in charge of the General Investigations Unit in the county’s south end.
On Sept. 13, 2007, Perez was faced with the death of an officer under his command. Just after roll call, Perez heard a call about a chase in Naranja. Then came a call that shots had been fired. Officer Jose Somohano had been killed by Shawn Labeet.
When Perez arrived, he dropped to the ground and prayed.
Three other officers were injured in the shootout.
Labeet, who initially escaped a manhunt, was shot and killed by police later that day at a Pembroke Pines apartment complex.
In his role as director, he brought transparency to his position by being more open about investigations and releasing body camera footage, made himself available to the public and became a better public speaker. While there were no major issues during his tenure, questions remain about a recent chase and shooting that left a UPS worker and an innocent bystander dead in Miramar.
When he officially walks away, Perez said he is looking at several options but is content first to spend time with his family and check off items on his “Honey-Do list.”
“I’m going to look at some things, but I’m going to take some time off first.”
The director said he’s hopeful that the succession plan in place is followed, which would put Deputy Director Freddy Ramirez in the top position, but that’s ultimately up to Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez.
“In my opinion, Freddy would be a great option,” Perez said.
“I have full faith and confidence in the ability of Deputy Director Alfredo Ramirez and the Department’s executive command staff to lead the Miami-Dade Police Department going forward and into the future,” he said in the tweet. “I will miss you all.”
Gimenez did not immediately respond to requests for comment, but tweeted a message to Perez.
“Juan, I wish you the very best in this new chapter,” he said. “I’ll miss your leadership & can-do attitude, but I know you’ve done the hard work in training & succession and are leaving a stronger, more community-focused force that’s a national model of excellence.”
This story was originally published December 20, 2019 at 5:08 PM.
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