MIAMI _ It took only minutes for law enforcement officers and two gunmen who hijacked a UPS truck to exchange nearly 200 rounds after a chaotic chase that ended with a shootout on a packed road in Florida two weeks ago. The state investigation into the actions of those officers is going to be quite the opposite _ methodical and very lengthy.
That was the message from Troy Walker, the special agent in charge with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, to Miami-Dade County's Community Relations Board on Wednesday.
Walker appeared at the invitation of the board to discuss the Miramar shootout, which left the two robbery suspects and two others dead _ Frank Ordonez, 27, whose truck was hijacked in Coral Gables, and Richard Cutshaw, a 70-year-old union representative who was struck by a stray bullet. Family members and friends, as well as some community leaders and law enforcement experts have questioned how the police handled the fast-evolving situation _ particularly the way it ended with motorists trapped in crossfire.
Walker asked for patience from the public.
"Please keep in mind we're only 13 days out from the event. It will take time," he said. "I know once we're done we'll be able to provide the state attorney with everything they need. If I had all the answers now, there would be no need for an investigation. So I ask that you guys be patient."
Walker released few details but did say that investigators had retrieved 195 shell casings from weapons fired by 21 police officers from four agencies and the two gunmen at the shootout site on Miramar Parkway and Flamingo Road.
He would not address a question about the FBI's involvement in the case and though autopsies had been completed, he wouldn't discuss the findings. He also wouldn't go into detail about what type of weapons the gunmen used or say if FDLE had any reason to believe that the UPS driver Ordonez was killed by hijackers before the shootout.
The special agent in charge said a team of FDLE investigators were reviewing thousands of hours of video, hundreds of police radio transmissions and that they were interviewing dozens of witnesses. He said they were still waiting on forensics, which would be a "tremendous help."
The chaotic scene, captured on live television feeds and dozens of cellphone video cameras during rush hour on Dec. 5, showed dozens of commuters stuck in their vehicles in traffic at the intersection as bullets whizzed past them during a firefight between police and suspected robbers Lamar Alexander and Ronnie Jerome Hill, both 41. Alexander and Hill were killed as police using vehicles as shields moved toward the UPS truck.
Walker, who patiently took questions Wednesday from Community Relations Board members and about two dozen people in attendance, said his agency was only investigating the gunfight in Miramar and would pass along its findings to the four police agencies involved in the gunbattle, the Florida Highway Patrol and Miami-Dade, Pembroke Pines and Miramar police.
Miami-Dade Police Director Juan Perez, who also attended Wednesday's meeting, said his agency had already started an internal review. Asked by someone in attendance why there was no attempt to negotiate with the gunmen, Perez said police officers are trained to deescalate a situation in everything they do.
But, said the director, "In order to negotiate with someone, they can't be shooting at you."
Walker said the FBI was investigating the Coral Gables robbery and kidnapping. Despite repeated requests for information, no one has explained why the federal agency is part of the investigation.
Walker said it would be up to the Broward County State Attorney's Office to determine if any charges are warranted against police after a grand jury hears details of FDLE findings. As for policy changes in the aftermath of the 23-mile chase that charged through several jurisdictions, that he said, would be up to individual agencies.
Walker also said he also recently met with the families of Ordonez, who was married with two children, and of Cutshaw, who was single with no kids.
"When I look at the victims, Mr. Cutshaw could have been my father and Frank could have been my son," Walker said. "I can't stress it enough, be patient with us through the process."
