Homeless man shocked with stun gun by Miami Beach police, cellphone footage shows

Miami Beach police jolted a homeless man in the chest with a stun gun on Friday before arresting him along Collins Avenue near Lincoln Road.

Ernesto Rodriguez, a spokesman for Miami Beach Police, said the man had been “combative” and “was involved in a disturbance on a trolley.”

About 4:30 p.m., police were called to 1669 Collins Ave. after Amir Abdul Crumbley, 30, became involved in a “heated verbal altercation” with a passenger on the trolley and began to hit the man, according to an arrest affidavit.

Police said Crumbley resisted officers’ attempts to handcuff him, screaming profanities and pulling away his body. Officers handcuffed Crumbley and attempted to place him in the backseat of a marked patrol vehicle. When he refused repeated directives, an officer struck Crumbley twice in the stomach with his elbow to force compliance, the report states. Police said Crumbley then kicked at an officer.

“I again gave Mr. Crumbley numerous loud and clear warnings that if he did not comply and stop resisting, he would be Tased,” the officer’s report states. “Mr. Crumbley continued to scream profanities at officers and refuse to comply wither officers (sic) commands.”

Footage of the incident shows the shirtless man standing still before an officer fired his stun gun, its prongs sticking to his chest and the resulting electric current causing neuromuscular incapacitation. He again kicked at officers after he was shocked, the report states.

The man screams out in pain before stumbling and falling to the ground. Footage of the incident was caught on cellphone camera by a passerby and posted to Instagram. The spectacle drew an “enormous crowd of onlookers,” some of whom walked into the roadway, the report states.

Crumbley was treated for his injuries on the scene by Miami Beach Fire Rescue and transported to Mt. Sinai Medical Facility for evaluation.

Police arrested Crumbley on charges of resisting an officer with violence, battery, disorderly conduct and possession of 20 grams or less of marijuana. He was booked into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. The arrest form says the responding officers were wearing body cameras.

This story was originally published April 5, 2019 at 10:38 PM.