A man who was paralyzed in 2021 when a Florida police officer shot him in the back with his service weapon instead of a stun gun has filed a federal lawsuit alleging excessive force and negligence.
Michael Ortiz, 43, was paralyzed from the waist down after he called 911 while he was experiencing a mental health crisis on July 3, 2021, according to the lawsuit, filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court for Southern Florida.
Fire personnel arrived and found Ortiz naked after he had taken a shower to try to calm down, the suit says.
Ortiz “acted with erratic behavior and spoke incoherent and confusing words in Spanish,” the lawsuit says.
Three Hollywood police officers also responded. They had physical control of Ortiz, the lawsuit says. One used a stun gun at least twice, and a second officer shot Ortiz, who was handcuffed, in the back, it says.
Ortiz was not committing a crime when he was shot with a stun gun and then a service weapon, the lawsuit says.
Hollywood police said in February 2022 that a review had determined the officer who opened fire intended to use his stun gun but shot his gun instead.
“The department recognizes this is an unfortunate incident and is doing what it can to make sure this doesn’t happen again,” police said in a statement at the time.
Ortiz’s lawsuit says that because he was naked and unarmed, he did not reasonably pose a threat.
“Michael Ortiz needed a helping hand, but what he got was a bullet in the back,” attorney Ben Crump said at a news conference Wednesday, according to NBC Miami.
The lawsuit names as defendants the city of Hollywood, its police and fire departments and Officers Henry Andrews, Jhonny Jimenez and Diante Roots.
It accuses Andrews of shooting Ortiz in the back and says Roots used a stun gun on him.
A Hollywood police spokesperson declined to comment Thursday on the suit or the incident. The spokesperson said that Andrews is assigned to desk duty and that Roots and Jimenez remain with the department.
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