Officer Johnathan Aledda was accused of four crimes in 2017, including attempted manslaughter and culpable negligence for firing three shots at a severely autistic man but hitting his caretaker.
Miami cop found not guilty for negligence after he opened fire at an autistic man clutching a toy truck, accidentally hitting his caregiver three times in the leg instead
- Johnathan Aledda was accused of four crimes in 2017: two counts of attempted manslaughter and two counts of culpable negligence
- A Florida jury acquitted Aledda on one culpable negligence charge on Saturday morning, but failed to reach a verdict for the remaining three
- A tearful Aledda bowed his head in relief when the non-guilty verdict was read out by the foreman
- Charles Kinsey was trying to coax his autistic patient, Arnaldo Rios Sotos, out of a busy road in 2016, when he was shot three times in the leg by Aledda
- Sotos had been holding a silver truck during his interaction with Kinsey, which Aledda said he mistook for a firearm
- On March 27, the state will decide whether to go to trial on Aledda’s three remaining charges
Johnathan Aledda (above) was accused of four crimes in 2017, including two counts of attempted manslaughter and two counts culpable negligence after he shot Charles Kinsey
A Florida jury acquitted a Miami SWAT officer of negligence on Saturday, after he shot a behavioral therapist trying to help an autistic child in 2016.
Officer Johnathan Aledda was accused of four crimes in 2017, including attempted manslaughter and culpable negligence for firing three shots at a severely autistic man but hitting his caretaker, Charles Kinsey, instead.
Kinsey was attempting to coax Arnaldo Rios Sotos out of the middle of a busy road in North Miami, on July 18, 2016, when the shots were fired.
Sotos had been holding a silver truck during his interaction with Kinsey, which Aledda said he mistook for a firearm.
Despite Kinsey’s repeated calls that the item in Rios Sotos’ hands was ‘a toy’, Aledda still fired.
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Arnaldo Rios Sotos, who has profound autism, was sat in the middle of a busy road clutching a toy truck, when his caregiver Charles Kinsey tried to coax him away
Charles Kinsey (pictured) was shot in the leg three times by Aledda, Despite his repeated calls that the item in Rios Sotos’ hands was ‘a toy’ Charles Kinsey attempts to surrender to officers before being shot
But a Florida jury acquitted Aledda on his culpable negligence charge on Saturday morning, but could not reach a verdict on his two counts of attempted manslaughter or his second count of culpable negligence.
A tearful Aledda bowed his head in relief when the non-guilty verdict was read out by the foreman. He remained silent on his exit from the court, according to WPLG.
In the exchange which received widespread viral and media attention, Kinsey can be seen screaming at officers begging them not to shoot, as he lays on the ground with his arms out-stretched, complying with their demands.
Despite his best efforts, Kinsey was shot three times in the leg by Aledda.
In court this week, the officer claimed he had actually been trying to take aim at Rios Sotos, who he believed was holding Kinsey hostage at gunpoint.
He also claimed to have not heard or received radio transmissions from senior officers telling those present to not use their weapons.
‘Obviously he had his hands forward but he was becoming aggressive so I thought that he could shoot him at any moment,’ Aledda said in court this week.
He added that he was stunned when he learned he’d struck Kinsey instead of Rios Sotos and tried ‘to do everything in my power to help him.’
Aledda’s attorney, Douglas Hartman, blamed faulty radios and poor supervision from the North Miami Police Department for the shooting.
‘He had a life-and-death situation,’ Hartman told the jury. ‘He thought without question that Mr. Kinsey was going to die, be shot and murdered.’
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Aledda claimed he had actually been trying to take aim at Rios Sotos, who he believed was holding Kinsey hostage at gunpoint (pictured reenacting the scene for the jury
Rios Sotos was sat in the middle of a road (left). Kinsey can be seen (right) screaming at officers begging them not to shoot, as he lays on the ground with his arms out-stretched, complying with their demands
A tearful Aledda bowed his head in relief when the non-guilty verdict was read out by the foreman
In a secret recording released by the Miami New Times, the former North Miami Police Chief, Gary Eugene, can be heard saying that his department was incompetent and claimed his officers failed to properly secure the crime scene after the shooting.
He added that a number of officers tired to force others to lie about the shooting to protect Aledda.
The recording contradicted the sworn statement he’d given to the force’s internal investigation department and he was dismissed from the police force last Friday.
Aledda was the first Miami police officer to be charged for an on-duty shooting since William Lozano in 1989, who was convicted – and later acquitted – of manslaughter for fatally shooting a black motorcyclist.
On March 27, the state will decide whether to go to trial on Aledda’s three remaining charges.
‘Since July 18, 2016, our community has been traumatized by North Miami Police Officer Jonathan Aledda’s shooting of mental health therapist Charles Kinsey in his effort to protect his client, Arnaldo Rios Soto,’ State Attorney Katherine Fernandez said in a statement.
‘[Prosecutors] will be discussing the case to determine the appropriate course of action as to the unresolved counts.’
Hartman expressed disappointment at the verdict, but said he and his client will take solace in the fact the jury were hung five to one on acquittal for each of the other charges.