MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – A 32-year-old Miami-Dade police officer has found herself on the other side of the law.
Laquandra Luster appeared in bond court Monday, following her arrest early that morning on charges of aggravated assault with a firearm and battery, both connected to a domestic violence incident.
According to a Miami-Dade police arrest report, Luster and her ex-boyfriend, who still live together and share a child, got into an argument Sunday evening at their home in the Ojus area of northeast Miami-Dade.
The dispute escalated when Luster armed herself with a black, semi-automatic gun, holding it in a downward position in her right hand while “pushing and striking” the man in his head, face and chest, as she “demanded her car keys,” the report states.
Luster momentarily walked away, but returned and “proceeded to continue with her aggression,” police wrote.
The report states Luster walked into the living room where she “grabbed an electronic video device from the TV stand area and destroyed it, smashing it several times against the ground.”
Police said Luster’s ex recorded the incident on his cellphone, which corroborated his account.
Luster was taken to the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center and later bonded out of jail.
In a statement, Miami-Dade Police Department Director Freddy Ramirez said he was “truly disappointed” to hear of Luster’s arrest.
“The privilege to be a law enforcement officer means the badge we wear represents integrity, trust and an opportunity to be the peacekeepers of our community, on and off-duty,” Ramirez said. “It is disheartening when an officer violates these values.”
Ramirez pledged that his department would “assist and cooperate with the judicial process.”
Police said Luster has been a sworn MDPD officer since 2019 and has been suspended from duty with pay, pending the judicial process.