Broward leaders want accountability for officer who shot protester with foam bullet
Lawmakers from Broward County say the Fort Lauderdale police officer who shot protester LaToya Ratlieff in the face with a foam rubber bullet during a protest on Sunday should be held accountable for actions that appear to violate police department policy.
“That ought to be illegal,” said Democratic state Rep. Joe Geller during a virtual press conference on Wednesday. “To take that action and hurt someone...that kind of reckless use of weapons should be illegal.”
Ratlieff, a 34-year-old grant writer for nonprofits who lives in Delray Beach, was struck in the head by a black projectile on Sunday during a protest in downtown Fort Lauderdale about the death of George Floyd and people of color at the hands of police. Miami Herald reporters witnessed the incident and additional video and photos of the incident made public on Wednesday show Ratlieff being led away from police moments before she was shot.
The police department’s policy for using foam batons states: “For safety reasons the deploying officer utilizing a less-lethal weapon should not aim at the head, throat, face, or groin area of a suspect. ... The potential for causing death or serious physical injury by such projectiles is a reality.”
The Fort Lauderdale Police Department also announced Wednesday that it is investigating why Ratlieff was shot in the head.
But Broward officials in the press conference, who were all Democrats, want more to be done.
Geller said Congress should make the act of shooting foam and rubber bullets at people’s head illegal, as Democrats prepare to advance legislation by New York Rep. Hakeem Jeffries that would ban “the application of any pressure to the throat or windpipe which may prevent or hinder breathing or reduce intake of air” after George Floyd’s death.
Floyd died on May 25 after Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes while arresting Floyd on suspicion of using a counterfeit $20 bill. Chauvin was fired and charged with second-degree murder.
Democratic Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a Broward County member of Congress who co-sponsored Jeffries’ bill, said the actions against Ratlieff “appear to be completely in violation of the guidelines of Fort Lauderdale police.”
“There are guidelines that are given in the Fort Lauderdale police department that this officer appears to have ignored,” Wasserman Schultz said. “He not only endangered her life but was injured significantly. She appears to have been doing nothing at all that was threatening. The officer was apparently asked to stand down and didn’t and fired the weapon at her anyway. It’s just an outrage and there should be consequences.”
Broward Rep. Ted Deutch said foam bullets that are aimed at someone’s head are lethal projectiles and that Congress should “demand accountability” even though it will be up to local officials to mete out any potential punishment.
Broward state Sen. Gary Farmer, the incoming Florida Senate Democratic leader, said the officer involved should “immediately be terminated and charged criminally.”
Fort Lauderdale police have not identified the officer who shot Ratlieff.
The calls for additional action to respond to Ratlieff’s shooting came as part of a call hosted by Democratic state Rep. Shevrin Jones. Additional speakers included U.S. Rep. Alcee Hastings, Broward Sheriff Gregory Tony and Broward County Mayor Dale Holness, along with faith leaders.
“For 401 years, we have been dealing with racial injustice inside this country,” Jones, the state representative, said, referring to the year 1619, when slaves from Africa first arrived in what is now Virginia. “We are tired of this. It is greater than just police brutality.”
Miami Herald reporters Nicholas Nehamas and Sarah Blaskey contributed to this report
