A Miami police gang unit was was working a joint operation, with federal authorities
last night, at Miami avenue and 75th street, police focused in on one car, but after that
nobody can tell us exactly what happened
We left out the club went to his car, we get a few blocks to the street, I don’t know
I say about 3 or 4 blocks from the club, and all the sudden police surrounding us.
In early 2011 Kareem Williams was with his cousin Travis McNeil at the Take-One lounge,
a popular strip club in Little Haiti.
A federal gang task force was surveilling the location, and followed Williams and McNeil
out of the parking lot.
The driver McNeil was intoxicated.
“We’ve got a DUI guys.
He’s running all over the place.
He’s running.
Guys we are stopping at Miami and 7-5, Miami and 7-5”
Two unmarked police cars surrounded them at a red light.
“We’ve got an officer involved shooting.
We got a black male down.
At Miami and 7 - 5.”
Within minutes Williams was handcuffed and pleading for his life, he was bleeding from
two gunshot wounds.
His cousin sitting next to him was dead.
Both had been shot by Miami police officer Reynaldo Goyos.
“I was letting him know that you know I know I feel something hit my stomach and I
was telling him “oh cousin I'm hurt”.
while all the while he was he was gone.
Travis McNeil, left behind two children and a tight knit community in Miami’s overtown
neighborhood.
My life changed a lot since that incident, I’m not the same.
But for Officer Reynaldo Goyos his career was temporarily interrupted.
He was fired after an internal investigation led by four senior officers ruled the shooting
was unjustified.
Goyos appealed the Chief’s decision through a process common to police departments nationwide
known as arbitration.
Less than two years later, a sole arbitrator, overturned his termination ordering the Chief
to bring Goyos back on the force.
Across the country officers fired for misconduct are being rehired despite the objections of
those running the departments.
The Washington Post surveyed the nation's 55 largest police departments and found that
at of the 37 departments that provided data at least 33 of them were forced to rehire
fired officers.
Of the more than 1,800 officers terminated for misconduct since 2008, the Post found
that 1 in 4 had been reinstated
Florida’s State Attorney decided not to press charges against the Officer for the
shooting.
Goyos maintains he thought McNeil was armed.
This is his account of what happened that night.
As soon as I saw what I believed to be a firearm, and I was in fear for my life, I took my target
and I - it was three shots in - you know right back to back to back.
It was -If you want it me, I could - it was bap bap bap, just like that.
But an investigation of that night’s shooting doesn’t support Goyos’ account.
Police found two black cell phones on the driver’s side of the car.
there were no guns.
McNeil and Williams were unarmed.
This was the seventh time in eight months that Miami police shot and killed a black
man prompting a probe by Justice Department.
Rodolfo Llanes led the police department’s internal investigation of the shooting.
He is now Miami’s police chief.
When we look at the facts of the case the physical evidence versus officer goyos statement.
It was inconsistent.
his statement was not consistent with the physical evidence.
And so that's why that shooting was ruled not justified.
Goyos appealed the city’s decision sending the dispute to an arbitration.
Over four days, an arbitrator listened to both sides present their arguments.
He then ruled the city did not have just cause to fire the officer.
From our perspective as an employer many of those rulings are concerning because in our
estimation they don't really they aren't really consistent with what we believe the facts
were and so as far from a process perspective you have one person that's basically judge
jury and executioner.
And in the state of Florida it is it is very rare that you can even challenge the arbitrator's
finding.
Eugene Gibbons, an attorney with Miami’s Fraternal Order of Police, represented Goyos
during his appeal.
Many times the chiefs believe misconduct has been committed but I'm able to prove later
that in fact there was no misconduct.
He believes arbitration is essential to protecting cops.
And you know the Goyos case in Miami is exactly that case.
There was no misconduct on the fact on the part of officer Goyos.
He was simply doing his job to the best of his ability that evening and the chief
It's my opinion that he terminated him based on the the push from the community.
And that was just factually wrong, morally wrong, ethically wrong.
You know because there was no basis for it.
Despite the objections of the chief, In August of 2014, Goyos returned to the force.
Of the 28 officers fired at the Miami Police department, Goyos is one of 8 rehired since
2008 through arbitration.
He received full back pay and the city covered his legal expenses.
McNeil’s family was outraged.
My son was 28 years old and he was just becoming a young man and a father to his son and I
still not to this day can understand why his life was snuffed out like it was and then
the officer who took his life, is allowed back out on the streets.
He’s back out there in the streets again.
There is some frustration on the part of I've been given a charge to maintain proper order
and discipline in this police department and somebody who is not a stakeholder in this
police department or in this community makes a determination that this person is fit to
still be employed by the agency.
Officer Goyos declined to be interviewed but in a text message he described his termination
as “political”.
As a result of the shooting, the city of Miami reached a nearly one million dollar settlement
with McNeil’s family.
It's Sad you know how that situation happened.
Like you know him getting off and You know got a job back like he was rewarded.
That's something tough to live with.
It's sad feeling . You know you just feel down.
Like Why?
Why?
You would like answers.
But.
I have no answers yet.