A South Florida woman is livid after she says multiple police officers entered her apartment for no reason and left her in the nude for 30 minutes, before being hauled away by police.
Miami Beach Police were dispatched to Candice Padavick's apartment building after a taxi driver was concerned that he might not be paid for his fare.
Surveillance video shows Padavick and her friend arriving home. Their cab driver stopped to wait in the lobby as Candice headed to her apartment for cash.
"It was $16.90. I wont forget . I tried to pay with a credit card and when I tried to pay he said no no I only take cash," said Padavic.
An hour later, Padavic was handcuffed and headed to jail. She was booked for resisting arrest, battery on a law enforcement officer, and petit theft for no payment of the taxi ride.
Padavic's friends Michael Bishop and Marcelo Debiasi were also arrested in her apartment.
This summer, prosecutors later dropped the charges against all three who were arrested earlier.
Local
The incident occured last year, even though the building's surveillance video shows a security employee handing over what they said was a $20 bill for the cab fee.
The security worker at the counter told defense lawyers that he instructed the taxi driver to notify police that the matter was resolved.
Surveillance video later shows officers Giordano Cardoso and Joseph Gonzalez entering the lobby after the security team said they gave the money to the taxi driver. The officers stopped at the security desk and then headed to Padavick's unit.
"I hear a really loud banging... So I threw on a robe and a towel on my head and I went to the door," Padavic said.
Officer Cardoso said in a deposition that they didn't get an arrest or search warrant because they just wanted to talk to the woman and her friends and did not plan on going inside her apartment.
However, all that changed when Padavick answered the door to the officers. Police say Padavick was intoxicated, disoriented and even pushed officer Gonzalez.
Padavick has a different version of what happened to her at her apartment.
"They pulled me out of the apartment and my towel fell off my head and I started trying to run back inside and the cops come into my apartment..... And so he's jerking me around and so I have his arm and my robe hanging off and this is completely open--nothing underneath. And then more cops come up," she said.
Padavick said she was unclothed for about 30 minutes and suffered from some scratches.
Officer Cardoso said he only had Padavick by the shoulder and was doing his best to close the robe but she kept removing it.
"The police officer said I could not give the taxi driver the money because its not right," said Juan Camona from Oceanside Plaza Security.
Padavicks attorney David Kubiliun believes that none of this should have happened.
"Given the fact that the security guard paid the taxi driver or even offered to pay the taxi driver, at that point they should have let it go," said Kubiliun.
When answering questions from the woman's defense lawyer, Officer Cordoso said Padavick had already been arrested when Officer Gonzalez eventually told him the security guard tried to pay.
Officer Cordoso's depositon reads:
"Attorney: ...does Gonzalez tell you..when you are upstairs...that the security guy was offering to pay the $16 cab fare?
Cardoso: I didn't find that out until later on....later on when writing the A-form is when he told me. Hey, look, he offered. I was like, it was your call bro."
A female officer later arrived and placed a garment on Padavick.
Officer Gonzalez said under oath that he didn't recall anyone offering to pay for the cab fare or the driver telling him an offer came or that he was already paid.
Due to the impending litigation, the City of Miami Beach and the police department cannot comment on the incident.
This case is currently being investigated by internal affairs.
