Civilian victims in UPS truck shootout sue Miami-Dade police, FHP and 4 other agencies
The estate of Frank Ordóñez, the UPS driver killed in a Dec. 5 shootout after a Coral Gables-to-Miramar pursuit of armed robbers, hit six law enforcement agencies with a negligence lawsuit Monday in Broward County Circuit Court.
Named as defendants in the suit, which also includes shot civilian Carlos Lara as a plaintiff: the Miami-Dade Police Department, Florida Highway Patrol, Broward Sheriff’s Office, and the Miramar, Pembroke Pines and Doral police departments.
The suit faults officers from these agencies with creating the situation for the tragic events by showing negligence in their pursuit of the UPS truck, “thereby leading to the eventual shootout in the close vicinity of occupied civilian vehicles.”
It also faults them in engaging in the shootout, which killed robbery suspects Lamar Alexander and Ronnie Hill, who had taken Ordóñez hostage, as well as Ordóñez, 27, and Rick Cutshaw, 70.
The Broward Sheriff’s Office issued a statement Wednesday afternoon:
“The allegations filed in the lawsuit incorrectly assert that the Broward Sheriff’s Office participated in the pursuit and apprehension of the suspects. Our Aviation Unit transported a patient to the hospital; however, no BSO deputies were involved in the very tragic incident. We continue to pray for peace for those who lost a loved one.”
The Herald learned the day after the tragedy that officers from Miami-Dade, FHP, Miramar and Pembroke Pines fired guns in the shootout.
“We hope the Defendant-Police Departments will release copies of their body worn camera footage and patrol car radio transmissions,” read a statement from lawyers Michael Haggard and Adam Finkel of The Haggard Law Firm. “The Ordóñez and Lara families —and the public — have the right to know what happened, and how law enforcement reacted on this tragic day.”
Police say Alexander and Hill carjacked Ordóñez’s United Parcel Service truck after robbing Regent Jewelers in Coral Gables. A chase that added police as it ran up Florida’s Turnpike, Okeechobee Road, Interstate 75 and the streets of Pembroke Pines — into and out of Century Village senior community at one point — ended at the intersection of Miramar Parkway and Flamingo Road.
Like Cutshaw, Lara happened to be in one of the cars trapped when the pursuit parade arrived during afternoon rush hour and the shooting started. Police say Alexander and Hill fired first.
“As result of the Defendant’s negligent implementation of its policies, innocent civilians, including Carlos Lara, were placed in the middle of a shootout, and used by the Defendants as a blockade and shield for incoming gunfire,” the lawsuit said.
The lawsuit says Lara suffered “serious injuries.”
The suspension of grand juries during the COVID-19 pandemic has stalled the investigation into the shooting.
An earlier version of this article included an incorrect reference in the lawsuit to the Miami Police Department as a defendant. The agency being sued is the Miami-Dade Police Department.
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