Miami’s Worst Cop from p6 man’s fault that he died because he ran from police. 2015 Po-po Versus Pee-pee (January 9) After the City of Miami commission voted to take away MPD’s ability to investigate its own police shootings, Ortiz publicly criti- cized commissioners for supposedly caring more about police harassing public urinators than about the rising murder rate in the city. Pledge of Allegiance (April 21) Ortiz sharply criticized a Black assistant chief who did not hold a hand over her heart for the Pledge of Allegiance. Seeking to have the assistant chief removed from a commander position, he asked, “If you’re not pledging allegiance to the United States, my question is what country are you pledging allegiance to?” Wrangling With Civilians (August 14) A local woman shot a video of a Miami po- lice officer beating a man in handcuffs and posted the clip to Facebook, drawing the ire of Ortiz, who harangued her online and posted screenshots from her social media. Suggesting Dead Child is a Thug (December 30) How does one define a “thug?” If you asked Ortiz in 2015, he might say a thug is a 12-year-old Black boy like Tamir Rice who was shot and killed by Cleveland police for carrying around a toy gun. 2016 Doxxing Private Citizens (February 3) In response to Claudia Castillo posting an online video of a Miami-Dade County po- lice officer speeding on the highway, Ortiz disseminated screenshots from the wom- an’s Facebook. He also gave out her per- sonal phone number to encourage his followers to call her. Boycotting Beyoncé (February 18) While many South Florida residents were excited when Queen Bey herself announced Anti-Needle Exchange (July 31) Ortiz railed against the idea of a needle exchange program meant to reduce the risk of AIDS among intravenous drug users in Miami. Promoted to Captain (October 18) The same year that Ortiz was suspended for doxxing a private citizen, he was pro- moted to the rank of captain. Union President No Longer (October 19) After his promotion, Ortiz stepped down as president of the Miami Fraternal Order of Police, and appointed his friend and confidant Edward Lugo to lead in his stead. Lugo was one of the officers who, along with Ortiz, allegedly assaulted the concert- goer at Ultra Music Festival. Lawsuit Costs City $75,000 (November 13) The City of Miami had to dole out $75,000 in taxpayer money to lawyers in a case involving a state trooper who claimed 88 police officers — among whom was Ortiz — used a confidential vehicle registration database to access her personal information. 2018 Miami Police Department photo In July 2016, he sued Ortiz for wrongful arrest and deprivation of his rights, claiming he was left in overly tight handcuffs for hours during the 2015 arrest. Backpay, Please (August 18) Ultra Music Festival sought to bar Ortiz from working the event in response to Or- tiz and other officers’ alleged assault of a would-be attendee. Seeing this as a loss of income, Ortiz sued the City of Miami to get backpay and return to security duty. Miami Heat Beatdown Allegations (September 2) In one of the more serious allegations in Ortiz’s file, the union chief was accused of joining a number of Miami officers in 2017 Civilian Panel Condemns Weak Reprimand (March 14) Upon reviewing internal affairs’ investiga- tion into Ortiz over his doxxing Claudia Castillo, Miami’s Civilian Investigative Panel said the department didn’t do enough to punish the officer. On Desk Duty (March 24) Months after MPD gave Ortiz a reprimand for posting Castillo’s phone number, a judge granted the woman a temporary re- straining order against Ortiz for alleged stalking, prompting the police department to take him off the street. Selfie With Arrestee (January 25) Not one to be camera shy, Ortiz posted a selfie with a detainee in the background, raising questions regarding whether he vi- olated MPD’s policy on depicting official police business on social media. NFL Player Charges Dropped (May 17) Ortiz purportedly claimed that wide re- ceiver Robby Anderson shoved him before he restrained and arrested the NFL star at Rolling Loud in 2017. The State Attorney’s Office ended up dropping a felony charge against Anderson because fellow officers did not corroborate Ortiz’s claims. Prose- cutors later declined to pursue the remain- ing charge of obstruction, a misdemeanor. Panel Finds Breach of Procedure (July 30) The Civilian Investigative Panel found that Ortiz broke departmental procedure by not showing up for depositions in the case of Robby Anderson. HIS CAREER SURVIVED MULTIPLE INTERNAL AFFAIRS INVESTIGATIONS AND OFTEN YIELDED NO DISCIPLINARY ACTION. she’d be kicking off her 2016 tour in Miami, Ortiz called for cops to boycott her Marlins Park show over a supposed “anti-police” message in her “Formation” music video. Hackers’ Revenge (February 23) Following Ortiz’s doxxing of Claudia Cas- tillo, activists identifying themselves as part of the hacking collective Anonymous posted what they claimed were the union chief’s personal address, phone number, and astrological sign. Sued For Alleged Wrongful Arrest (July 7) Ruben Sebastian claimed he was injured when Ortiz and other officers arrested him on false charges of resisting law enforcement and reckless display of a firearm. The charges were eventually dropped, though Sebastian still lost his job as a security officer. 8 brutally beating François Alexandre after a Miami Heat championship game. The man was left bruised and battered, with a broken eye socket. Protest hypocrisy? (November 16) Ortiz stated on his social media that those who protested Donald Trump’s election were having a “tantrum.” Critics pointed to Ortiz’s own history of protest, including an incident in which he and his fellow offi- cers stormed city hall in 2014 to protest loss of benefits. MPD Reprimand For Doxxing (December 21) It took ten months for MPD’s Internal Af- fairs division to reprimand Ortiz for releas- ing the contact information of private citizen Claudia Castillo. Watchdogs claimed it was just a slap on the wrist. Restraining Order Lifted (April 17) Ortiz’s 2017 suspension didn’t last long. He returned to duty once a judge lifted Castil- lo’s restraining order owing to a lack of evi- dence that he was stalking her. Sunday Night Tackler (May 9) Ortiz detained NFL player Robby Ander- son after the wide receiver allegedly got into a fight with security at Rolling Loud fest. Anderson was charged with obstruc- tion and resisting an officer, but the crimi- nal case against him would later fall apart. It wasn’t Ortiz’s first arrest of an NFL player: in 2009, Ortiz yelled profanity and brandished his gun at NFL star Jonathan Vilma during a roadside stop before arrest- ing him on false charges, according to a grievance filed by Vilma. Judge Denies Backpay (August 17) An appeals court ruled that Ortiz and his friend Edward Lugo were not entitled to backpay for years they did not work as se- curity at Ultra Music Festival after the pair were banned from the event for allegedly assaulting a concertgoer. Little Action From Internal Affairs (November 15) New Times reporter Meg O’Connor chron- icled how internal affairs investigations into Ortiz consistently went nowhere. Losing Union Influence (December 10) Ortiz’s camp lost footing in the Miami Fraternal Order of Police union when brothers Tommy and Matthew Reyes were elected as president and vice presi- dent, respectively, beating out Ortiz- backed candidates. SEPTEMBER 29-OCTOBER 5, 2022 NEW TIMES | MUSIC | CAFE | CULTURE | NIGHT+DAY | NEWS | LETTERS | CONTENTS | miaminewtimes.com | browardpalmbeach.com
