Reuters/Miami Beach, Florida

Florida prosecutors won’t seek charges against a dozen police officers who unleashed a hail of bullets that killed a fleeing black man and injured four bystanders on a crowded South Beach street during Memorial Day Weekend celebrations in 2011.
“All of the officers were justified in the discharge of their firearms,” said a nearly 90-page report released by the Miami-Dade County state attorney’s office late Tuesday.
The decision hinged on Florida’s “fleeing felon” law, which gives law enforcement the ability to use force to defend themselves or others while making an arrest.
The release of the report comes as police around the country are under intense scrutiny for fatal shooting incidents, notably the killing of an unarmed black teenager, Michael Brown, in Ferguson, Missouri.
The incident, which drew national attention, began when officers stopped 22-year-old Raymond Herisse at about 4am after seeing him spinning his car’s tires in traffic. When they approached the car they say Herisse reached over the passenger side seat, the report said. Police lunged for Herisse’s arm prompting him to swerve away, hitting an officer in the process.
Later Herisse crashed into a handful of bystanders’ cars and nearly hit several more officers on bicycles before coming to a stop. As police surrounded the car he attempted to drive off again.
Police fired 130 rounds at Herisse’s car, according to the report, hitting him 16 times. After the shooting police say they found a Beretta handgun under the rear passenger seat, but evidence showed Herisse did not fire the weapon.
The incident was caught on video from nearby buildings and posted on YouTube.
It spawned a slew of lawsuits from furious family members, as well as a number of changes in how police handle Miami Beach’s predominantly black Memorial Day celebrations.
The Miami Beach police department also faces scrutiny following the tasing death of 18-year-old Israel Hernandez-Llach in the summer of 2013. An investigation into that incident is still pending.
“The family is disappointed in the outcome, but they are very happy that questions they’ve had for four years have been answered,” Herisse’s family’s attorney Marwan Porter told the Miami Herald. “Raymond did not shoot a gun at any officer.”
Last year Miami Beach police issued a policy change saying officers may no longer shoot at moving cars.
A veteran Las Vegas police officer has been suspended and accused of misdemeanor battery after a body camera he was wearing provided evidence that he injured a woman he arrested for littering and loitering for the purpose of prostitution, authorities said Tuesday.
An expert said it might be one of the first cases in which a body camera has led to criminal charges against a police officer.
Officer Richard Scavone, 43, used “not only excessive, but also unreasonable” force in the 5am January 6 scuffle in a neon-lit industrial area one block west Las Vegas Strip resorts, Clark County undersheriff Kevin McMahill told reporters outside Las Vegas police headquarters.
“We’re not going to shy away from bringing these incidents to light when a body camera captures actions of one of our officers that do not appear to be within the confines of law and policy,” McMahill said.
The video, as part of a criminal investigation, won’t immediately be made public, he said.
Charges were dropped against the woman, who received what officials termed a minor facial injury when a piece of pierced jewellery was ripped out.
Asked if Scavone could lose his job, McMahill said an internal investigation of the incident wasn’t complete.
Scavone, an eight-year police officer, was wearing a camera as part of a pilot programme putting the devices on collars and lapels of 200 patrol officers in the 2,400-officer department.
William Sousa, a University of Nevada, Las Vegas, researcher assessing the programme, said that while dashboard cameras have been used as evidence in police misconduct cases around the country, few cases have involved body-camera video. Part of the reason is because lapel cameras are new, Sousa said, and because officers and people around them tend to behave better knowing they’re on video.
In January, two Albuquerque police officers were charged with murder in the March 2014 killing of a homeless camper after video from an officer’s helmet camera showed camper James Boyd, who authorities say had struggled with mental illness, appearing to surrender when officers opened fire.
Defense lawyer Joshua Tomsheck called Scavone a decorated patrol officer with an exemplary record who volunteered for the lapel camera. Scavone was placed on paid leave pending the resolution of the criminal case and internal investigation.
Tomsheck said he expected Scavone will receive an appearance summons to court, rather than face arrest. He said he hopes to resolve the case without a trial.
The misdemeanor battery charge carries the possibility of six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.
“The circumstances that led to this incident contained a lot of additional information that was not released to the press,” Tomsheck said. “That information will come to light in the future, and we expect the case will resolve quickly and expeditiously.”
Camera video is reviewed every time an officer uses force on the job, McMahill said. He didn’t say how many times that has happened.
In announcing the criminal charge, Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson issued a statement vowing to prosecute officers who use excessive force.
“The vast majority handle themselves in a professional and appropriate manner,” Wolfson said. “For those who take it too far, there are consequences.”