Shooting of Charles Kinsey

Background

On July 18, 2016, shortly before 5:00 p.m. EDT, a 23-year-old autistic man with a toy truck left a mental health facility, identified as MacTown Panther Group Homes. Charles Kinsey, a 47-year-old mental health worker, left the facility to find and retrieve the patient. Kinsey had worked at the facility for over a year, was involved in community efforts to keep local kids in school, and is the father of five children. According to NPR, Kinsey has been a member of the local "Circle of Brotherhood" group whose mission, as listed on Facebook, is "Serving and Protecting our Community".

The police stated that they were responding to reports of a man threatening to shoot himself in the area, at Northeast 127th Street and 14th Avenue. Police received a call around 5:30 p.m. The North Miami Assistant Police Chief, Neal Cuevas, said that the autistic man did not comply with orders when they arrived on the scene.

Shooting

While Kinsey lay on the ground with his hands raised, one officer, identified by the city as Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team member Jonathan Aledda, fired three rounds from a rifle, with one bullet striking him in the leg. The shooting occurred a block from the group home where Kinsey worked at 1365 NE 128th St.

On Thursday, Kinsey's lawyer Hilton Napoleon II provided the Miami Herald with a cellphone video of Kinsey lying on the ground, his hands in the air, moments before the shooting. In the video Kinsey asks police not to shoot him, while his patient plays with his toy truck. Kinsey stated that he was trying to convince his patient to obey officers' commands. The video also shows Kinsey telling police that he is unarmed. In the video Kinsey is seen telling police, "All he has is a toy truck. A toy truck. I am a behavior therapist at a group home." Kinsey is also shown telling his patient, "Please be still... lay [sic] down on your stomach."

Kinsey stated that after being shot, police turned him on his back, handcuffed him, and left him bleeding on the road for 20 minutes. Police did nothing to stop Kinsey's bleeding before an ambulance arrived. A second video shows officers carrying rifles and patting down Kinsey and his patient while they lie on the ground.

Aftermath

A witness to the shooting told the Associated Press that when police arrived, he grabbed binoculars and saw that the autistic man seated in the road, next to Kinsey, was holding a toy truck. He informed an officer that the man was holding a toy and not a gun, but she told him to back up, and did not inform other officers. Kinsey was shot shortly afterwards.

Kinsey survived the shooting after being taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital. Kinsey said that at first his life flashed before his eyes, and thought of his family. Kinsey added that being shot "was so surprising, it was like a mosquito bite." According to Kinsey, when he asked the officer why he had shot him, the officer replied, "I don't know." Kinsey's lawyer stated that when another officer asked the shooting officer "why did you shoot this guy", the shooter again responded, "I don't know."

Kinsey stated that he was more worried about his patient, who did not have his hands raised, and did not believe he himself would be shot. "As long as I've got my hands up, they're not gonna shoot me, that's what I'm thinking," Kinsey said. "Wow, I was wrong." Kinsey's wife said, "I'm just grateful he's alive and able to tell his story."

Following the shooting, the name of the police officer who shot Kinsey was not immediately revealed to the public. Napoleon said that he believed the officer was a white male. The officer was placed on administrative leave, and in addition, police announced that the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office would assist with an ongoing investigation. Police announced that the shooter was a 30-year-old Hispanic officer who had worked in the police department for four years, and was a member of the SWAT team. Miami police subsequently identified the officer as Jonathan Aledda. A second officer was suspended without pay for giving conflicting accounts of the shooting.

A police department employee told the Herald that the officer fired because the autistic patient did not obey police commands. On July 22, the head of the local police union, John Rivera, said that the officer who fired the bullets was aiming for Kinsey's patient, and was "trying to save Kinsey's life." Rivera said that Kinsey "did everything right." In response to Rivera's statements, Napoleon and some media outlets questioned the explanation that Kinsey was shot accidentally, and asked why Kinsey was handcuffed and left bleeding on the ground after being shot.

Lawsuit

On August 3, Kinsey filed a federal lawsuit against Jonathan Aledda, claiming he violated his civil rights, and used excessive force and falsely arrested him. In his complaint, Kinsey states that Aledda violated his Fourth Amendment right to be free from excessive force during police seizures when he shot him in the leg. He also states that Aledda put handcuffs on him that were too tight, cutting off his circulation.

Reactions

After the release of the video, Florida Congresswoman Frederica Wilson tweeted that she was shocked and angered by Kinsey's shooting, writing that "Like everyone else I have one question: Why?"

On Thursday after the shooting, Black Lives Matter activists protested outside the North Miami police department, stating that it was Kinsey who was "protecting and serving" in the incident, and confronting police officials. Protestors demanded that the shooting officer be fired.

NPR wrote that the incident "has renewed discussions of officers' use of force".

Internationally, France TV wrote that while the incident could have ended far more tragically, it was "no less absurd and worrisome", calling the event "surreal". Le Figaro wrote that the story broke at a time when the United States has been "plagued by intense controversy following the death of several blacks shot by police, and attacks on five policemen."