Miami city manager’s 8 reasons why he wants police chief Art Acevedo gone
When Miami City Manager Art Noriega moved to fire Police Chief Art Acevedo late Monday, he cited eight specific reasons for the decision, including one that contradicted some of his own comments less than a month ago.
Noriega took the unusual step of taking to Twitter on Sept. 19 to defend his embattled chief. He posted that he had reviewed police union allegations of a cover-up of an accident involving the chief’s city-issued Chevy Tahoe and found the complaint didn’t hold up. He dismissed it as an attempt by the union to “baselessly undermine” the chief and welcomed an investigation by an independent review panel.
In his two-page memo explaining why he wanted the chief gone, Noriega did an about-face. The memo came two weeks after a city mechanic determined there was damage to the SUV’s front right panel and bumper, without determining how exactly it got there. In Noriega’s memo, the city manager said the chief failed to “initially report” damage to his vehicle by waiting 10 days to report it through the proper channels.
Without mentioning names, Noriega also said Acevedo had terminated members of the police department for the very same reason and that the chief had failed to follow “proper protocols.”
One of Acevedo’s first controversial moves was a lengthy internal investigation into a damaged SUV that led to the firing of city’s highest-ranking police couple, then-Deputy Chief Ron Papier and his wife, Cmdr. Nerly Papier. Acevedo fired the couple in June, saying they had failed to properly report that Nerly Papier had blown out two tires on her city-issued vehicle when she hit a curb near where people were walking.
The issue was brought up repeatedly as “hypocritical” during a pair of hearings two weeks ago by city commissioners who could ultimately decide Acevedo’s fate. Noriega’s suspension of Acevedo gives him five days to leave and accept termination or face a hearing before city commission with at least three of five members likely to support his ouster.
Acevedo, who says he is forbidden from speaking publicly by the city manager, wrote a letter to staff on Monday saying it had been a “privilege serving with you and fighting for you,” without saying whether he intended to fight to retain his job.
In the two-page letter he issued to Acevedo, Noriega also claimed the chief has “lost the confidence and trust” of the rank and file, used improper language while arguing with a protester and that he offended the community when he made the “Cuban Mafia” comment. In that instance, the chief told officers during a morning roll call that the “Cuban Mafia” was running the department. He later said he was unaware it was a term used by Fidel Castro to paint Miami exiles who opposed the regime as criminals.
Noriega went on to say that Acevedo made a statement saying the city was considering vaccine mandates and a potential dispute with the governor to defend the policy an that the chief did not report 21 days of leave and personal time he’s taken since his hiring in April. He also said he disobeyed a direct order from the manager when he paid a new hire more than permitted.
And finally, Noriega called the chief’s action plan for the police department — which the manager demanded — “materially deficient.” Noriega said the plan failed to recognize the department morale problem and didn’t acknowledge strained community relations.
“The chief presented no significant plan to solve either problem,” the city manager said.
This story was originally published October 12, 2021 at 9:02 AM.
