Years after his wrongful arrest, a Florida man is now suing the department that locked him up for allegedly stealing his own car, according to the Miami New Times.
Samuel Scott Jr. is suing the City of Miami and the five officers: Jonathan Guzman, Michael Bloom, Brandon Williams, Miguel Hernandez, and Randy Carriel. He claims they unlawfully searched, falsely imprisoned, and maliciously prosecuted him.
Scott's lawsuit was filed in federal court Nov. 13. His attorney, Faudlin Pierre, said his client is seeking $500,000 in damages.
It all started when Samuel Scott Jr. called the police to report that his car was stolen from outside his aunt’s Buena Vista, Fla., home at around 5:40 p.m. June 1, 2018. What ended up happening was the opposite his expectations.
Instead of helping him to find his car or the thief, Miami Police Department officers arrested the 44-year-old Black man, according New Times. Within a half hour of making the call to say his 2006 Black Jeep Compass was missing, Scott found himself in handcuffs.
“I’m telling you, you guys have the wrong guy,” Scott can be seen telling an officer in body-worn camera footage obtained by the New Times.
“The description of the guy who took off in your car is just like yours,” an officer responded.
“But that’s half of Miami,” Scott said. Later, he asked why he would call the police if he was the thief.
Scott was eventually charged with leaving the scene of an accident, false reporting of a crime, failure to carry a concealed-weapon license, and possession of marijuana. All charges were dropped by the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office.
“He reported to the cops because he believed that the cops were actually going to assist him,” Pierre said “And then it turns out that they racially profiled him.”
According to Scott's arrest report, Guzman saw Scott’s Jeep Compass driving 20 miles per hour over the speed limit a few miles away and attempted to stop the vehicle when it collided with another vehicle. However, the driver fled on foot. They were described as a "Black male, bald, about 6'2" and heavy set, with a white tank top.”
Officers then interrogated Scott as if he had stolen the vehicle when they came to his aunt’s house. According to the complaint, one officer asked Scott if his car was repossessed. Another later pulled out a Taser.
Scott was wearing a black shirt over a white undershirt, not a white tank. He is also four inches shorter than the subject description.
Yeah, that’s him,” an officer says on the body-worn camera footage. “He’s sweating, he has a black shirt on top of the tank top shirt.”
Police arrested Scott that evening and transported to Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.
Scott tried to tell officers that he’d never been jailed before but they did not believe him, according to the lawsuit.
Guzman shut off his body-worn camera at least three times during the incident. He was one of three officers wearing cameras at the time of Scott's arrest.
After the incident, Scott filed a complaint accusing Guzman of taking his cellphone, military ID, and wallet. Miami’s Civilian Investigative Panel sustained the allegation and confirmed Guzman exercised “negligence of duty” and was responsible for Scott’s property as the primary arresting officer.
Pierre said race played a major role in Scott's arrest, since officers couldn’t tell the difference between him and a completely different person.
No one else has been arrested for stealing Scott's car, said Pierre.
“Yes, we want justice, but in the form of him being compensated,” Pierre said of the lawsuit. “That's the only way our legal system actually provides any remedies.”
All five officers involved are still on the Miami Police Department force, according to a roster obtained by New Times.
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