Miami cop probed for repeatedly punching homeless man accused of stealing Publix chicken
A Miami police officer is under investigation after video surfaced on social media this week showing him shoving a homeless man to the ground inside a supermarket, then punching him repeatedly in the head before handcuffing him.
Officer Alexander Garcia-Contreras has been relieved of duty with pay as investigators review whether he acted appropriately in arresting the shoplifting suspect, the department said on Wednesday.
The arrest of Willie Barbor, 58, happened at the Publix, 1776 Biscayne Blvd., on April 16. The charges of petty theft, resisting without violence and disorderly conduct were quickly dismissed by prosecutors four days after his arrest, according to court records.
Rough arrests in Miami-Dade County have garnered increasing scrutiny in the past few years, as police body-worn cameras have become more common and camera-equipped smartphones have become ubiquitous among citizens.
Over the past couple of years, Miami-Dade prosecutors have charged a string of officers from various departments for allegedly using excessive force during arrests. At least three, however, have been acquitted at trial. Several other high-profile cases are awaiting trial, including the case of a Miami Gardens officer who pressed his knee on the neck of a woman outside a strip club.
The spotlight on rough arrests has come as activists across the country have called for police reform in the wake of high-profile deadly encounters between officers and citizens, often Black men. The May 2020 killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis led to a wave of protests across the nation; this month, former police officer Derek Chauvin was convicted of murder for fatally pressing his knee on the man’s neck for more than nine minutes.
In Barbor’s case, he could not be reached for comment. He was released from jail the day after his arrest, after being ordered to stay away from the Publix.
According to an arrest report, Garcia-Contreras was working an off-duty security shift at the Publix when a store manager summoned him to say that Barbor had grabbed a piece of cooked chicken from the deli and was eating it as he walked away.
When the manager asked him to pay, the arrest report said Barbor replied, “F--- you” and said he didn’t have to pay because he was homeless. “I don’t have any money,” Barbor was reported as telling the manager.
According to the report, the officer asked him to accompany him to an office so he could issue a trespassing order. Barbor “started to walk away disregarding Ofc. Garcia-Contreras’ lawful orders,” the report said.
Garcia-Contreras tried to grab him, the report claimed, and Barbor started “tensing up, pushing his hands away from the officer.” Garcia-Contreras “re-directed the defendant to the floor and gave him a couple of distractionary strikes to gain the defendant’s compliance,” the report said.
The video, however, shows Barbor with his hands up, backing up slightly when the officer pushes him onto a salad bar. When the officer could not get Barbor’s hands around his back, he delivered at least eight punches to the back of the man’s head.
The head of Miami’s police unoin, Tommy Reyes, said he believed the officer acted appropriately.
“The guy was shoplifting. He’s screaming ‘I’m not resisting’ but he’s obviously resisting. We’re allowed to use pain compliance,” said the president of Miami’s Fraternal Order of Police.
So-called distractionary strikes have also come under scrutiny.
Despite the jarring videos of rough arrests, police officers across Florida have long employed — and are trained to use — punches and slaps to quell someone they believe is a threat. Officers insist they are needed for their own safety, but critics believe that too often they provide cover for hot-headed cops losing their cool.
One recent case that went viral could become a challenge to what has been a widely accepted practice. As Black Lives Matter demonstrations were going on downtown, Miami-Dade Police Officer Antonio Rodriguez suddenly struck a Black woman who was taunting him at Miami International Airport last year.
At the time, Miami-Dade Police Director Alfredo “Freddy” Ramirez said he was “shocked and angered” by the video and relieved Rodriguez of duty, moving to fire him.
This story was originally published April 28, 2021 at 2:19 PM.
