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MIAMI---The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida's Greater Miami Chapter has filed a lawsuit in federal court on behalf of Emily Vogel, a Miami photographer whose car and belongings were allegedly unlawfully searched, damaged and destroyed by police officers during the Free Trade Area of the Americas summit held in Miami in November 2003.
Officers employed by the City of Miami and Broward Sherriff's Office drilled holes into Vogel's lawfully parked car, detonated explosives that destroyed the car, then searched and destroyed her property.
"It is a sad day in America when the police, who are supposed to protect me, destroy my private property and my confidence in the system," said Vogel, a Miami-based photographer and plaintiff in the case. "As a law-abiding, taxpaying citizen - and at the time a student - I expected more from the police. They showed me that they have no respect for my civil rights and in return I will fight as hard and as long as necessary to receive justice."
Vogel drove to downtown Miami during the FTAA Summit and demonstrations to photograph an anti-tobacco rally for her photography class at the university. In addition to Vogel's car, her belongings, including boxes of unexposed film negatives, were searched and destroyed.
Even though no contraband or illegal substance or material was found in the car, Officers detained Vogel for extensive questioning. She was not offered assistance after the incident and was stranded in downtown Miami for eight hours while waiting for police to allow a tow truck to enter the area.
"If the police involved had stopped to analyze the situation rather than act outside the law, they would have come to a different conclusion and avoided an unnecessary incident," said Rosalind Matos, ACLU of Florida Staff Counsel. "The answer going-forward is for the police to conduct thorough training on constitutional rights and how to use good judgment to prevent similar incidents in the future."
The ACLU lawsuit charges that the illegal detention, search, seizure and destruction of Vogel's vehicle and property violated her Fourth Amendment right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures.
According to police "after-action" reports, Vogel's car was found not to be a threat and contained no illegal substances. No charges were ever filed against her by the police.
The lawsuit seeks a trial by jury. Compensation and damages are being sought for the illegal detention and lost property to deter officers from taking similar unconstitutional and harmful actions in the future.
Click here to read the Vogel v. City of Miami et al complaint online (PDF).
Vogel v. City of Miami et al was filed today in United States District Court, Southern District of Florida. The case is the seventh in a series of lawsuits filed by the ACLU stemming from the FTAA summit held in Miami in 2003. Named defendants in the case are The City of Miami; Broward Sherriff Kenneth C. Jenne, II; MPD Sgt. Rafael Masferrer; MPD Officer Manny Bello; MPD Abel Costa; MPD Julio Pinera; MPD Jesus Gutierrez; BSO Sgt. Frank Cornetta; BSO George Suhaj; BSO Rob Conners; BSO John Melbourne; and unknown number of unnamed MPD and BSO officers. 2-25-07
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© 2007 North
Country Gazette
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