Caught on Camera

Ex-Miami-Dade Officer Gets 364 Days in Jail in 2019 Rough Arrest of Woman

In addition to the 364-day sentence, Alejandro Giraldo will be on probation for 18 months and will have to take an anger management course

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A former Miami-Dade police officer who was convicted in a woman's rough arrest that was caught on video more than three years ago was sentenced to just under a year behind bars Thursday.

In addition to the 364-day sentence, Alejandro Giraldo will be on probation for 18 months and will have to take an anger management course.

"Bad days happen to everyone. and in retrospect, on March 5, 2019, I too had a bad day," Giraldo said in court Thursday.

He will surrender to serve the sentence on July 11. He had been facing up to five years in prison.

Giraldo was found guilty of battery and official misconduct after cellphone video circulated on social media in March 2019 showing him tackling Dyma Loving.

In court Thursday, Giraldo apologized to Loving, who accepted the apology.

"I want to apologize to Dyma Loving regarding any trauma I may have caused her and her family," he said.

"I do accept your apology. And thank you, thank you," Loving replied.

Loving's attorney had recommended a maximum of 60 days in jail for Giraldo, but Miami-Dade Judge Sue Ellen Venzer ordered the longer sentence.

"This was absolutely unexpected," Loving said of the sentence.

The incident happened in March of 2019, when Loving called police to report that a neighbor pointed a shotgun at her.

Things escalated when Loving said she and her friend tried to explain what happened. Loving and Giraldo exchanged words, and Giraldo abruptly grabbed Loving's arm and neck.

The rough takedown was caught on camera. Police body cameras also recorded the encounter.

The video showed Giraldo pushing Loving into a fence and then taking her to the ground, where she was handcuffed. Loving was charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest without violence, but those charges were later dropped.

“I have nightmares of this till this day. There’s not a moment that doesn't go by where I don't think of what this man has done to me," Loving said outside of the courtroom Wednesday.

Giraldo’s wife briefly spoke in court and said her husband is a good father and a pastor at a local church.

Giraldo's attorney said he plans on appealing the conviction.

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