Newly released video shows a Miami-Dade police officer kicking a teenager while he was handcuffed and lying on the ground last February.
The video was released Thursday by the state attorney’s office as part of the investigation into the February 2018 incident in northwest Miami-Dade. Gustavo De Los Rios, 38, faces a misdemeanor battery charge and was relieved of duty following his arrest last August. He had been with the department since 2007.
Police were looking for the teen in connection with a burglary and found him in a car that was being driven by his mother, the Miami Herald reported. Police said the teen took a swing at one officer during a confrontation. Officers tried to shoot him with a Taser but it didn't work, and he was eventually taken into custody. The teen wasn't injured.
The video shot by a bystander shows officers standing over the teen and De Los Rios straddling his back as he handcuffs him. After De Los Rios gets up, he is seen kicking the teen in the side of his face.
“His actions are disappointing and do not reflect our agency’s core values,” said Miami-Dade Police Department director Juan J. Perez at the time of the arrest. “I assure our community that all allegations of misconduct, involving our personnel, will be vigorously investigated.”
According to the Herald, De Los Rios was arrested in Broward County in 2017 on a domestic violence charge, which was later dropped.
