DORAL, Fla. – A Miami-Dade police officer has been relieved of duty after cellphone video of a woman being violently brought to the ground and handcuffed by officers surfaced on social media.
Miami-Dade Police Director Juan Perez addressed the video Wednesday night in a statement on Twitter.
"I find the actions depicted on the video deeply troubling and in no way reflective of our core values of integrity, respect, service and fairness," Perez said.
The video of the March 5 incident has been widely circulated on social media.
In the video, a woman can be heard arguing with officers, one of whom tells her that she needs to be "corrected."
"Why do I have to be corrected when my life was just threatened and my daughter's (inaudible)?" the woman, later identified by police as Dyma Loving, says.
After Loving repeatedly tells the officers not to touch her, she is pulled to the ground by several officers. One of the officers appeared to put her in a headlock to get her to the ground.
"I wanted to call my kids," Loving tells officers. "My phone is dead."
The woman recording the video can be heard asking officers, "Why are you doing that?"
As the woman recording the video asks one of the officers for his name, he tells her, "Ma'am, I'm sorry. We're busy right now."
Loving, 26, was arrested on misdemeanor charges of disorderly conduct and resisting an office without violence.
"He just thought that because he was in this uniform he was the king of the world," Loving told Local 10 News.
According to a Miami-Dade Police Department incident report, Loving was involved in a dispute with her neighbor, Frank Tumm.
Police said Loving and another woman, Adrianna Green, were walking past Tumm's home on Southwest 201st Street when Tumm, 50, called Green a "whore." Green told police she grabbed a plant from Tumm's yard and threw it at him, at which time Tumm grabbed a shotgun, pointed it at both women and threatened to shoot them.
According to a supplemental incident report, Loving was "acting belligerent and would not obey commands." Police said Loving was "upset, very irate and uncooperative."
"I expected them to come, get our statement, you know, go get his statement, get his gun, arrest him, you know, for threatening us, you know, and, I don't know, it completely went the opposite way," Loving said.
Police said Loving continued screaming at officers after being asked to stop and was arrested.
"This is where, when I was on the ground, when he put me on the ground, the way he had me positioned, my arm was on the ground and he just ripped my arm from up under me, which made it scrape against the concrete," Loving said, displaying the blue Band-Aid on her right elbow.
The report identifies the officer who took Loving to the ground as A.I. Giraldo.
Perez said an immediate inquiry was initiated upon being made aware of the video. He said the officer was relieved of duty and of his role as a field-training officer.
I am aware of the concerning video circulating on social media involving our department. I find the actions depicted on the video deeply troubling and in no way reflective of our core values of integrity, respect, service, and fairness...
— Juan Perez (@JPerezMDPD) March 14, 2019
This is why last week, upon becoming aware of the video posted on social media, an immediate inquiry was initiated which resulted in the involved officer being relieved of duty and of his role as a field training officer...
— Juan Perez (@JPerezMDPD) March 14, 2019
An investigation into the entire incident is currently ongoing and upon its conclusion, I will hold those that violated any of our policies and/or procedures accountable for their actions or lack thereof.
— Juan Perez (@JPerezMDPD) March 14, 2019
"An investigation into the entire incident is currently ongoing and upon its conclusion, I will hold those that violated any of our policies and/or procedures accountable for their actions or lack thereof," Perez said.