Politics & Government

Appeals Court Overturns Conviction Of North Miami Police Officer Jonathan Aledda, Who Shot At Unarmed Autistic Man

"There were 13 officers on the scene and he was the only SWAT officer and he did what he was trained to do," Aledda's attorney said.

February 18, 2022

An appeals court Wednesday ordered a new trial for a former North Miami police officer who was convicted of culpable negligence in a high-profile shooting of a caretaker of an autistic man who had left a group home.

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A three-judge panel of the 3rd District Court of Appeal said a circuit judge erred by refusing to allow a SWAT commander to testify about training Jonathan Aledda received related to hostage rescues.

Aledda’s attorney Eric Schwartzreich told CBS4’s Peter D’Oench, “Essentially what the appeals court said is that Officer Aledda should have been able to show what training he received and he was deprived of a fair trial. There were 13 officers on the scene and he was the only SWAT officer and he did what he was trained to do. He showed up on the scene and he believed there was a hostage situation and he fired to protect someone. I understand there are strong feelings on both sides of the aisle but this is not a case of a bad police officer. He was trying to save someone’s life.”

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