A City of Miami Fire Rescue lieutenant who was caught on video punching a handcuffed patient on a stretcher said he has no regrets over his actions. NBC 6’s Heather Walker reports
A City of Miami Fire Rescue lieutenant who was caught on video punching a handcuffed patient on a stretcher said he has no regrets over his actions.
Robert Webster was relieved of duty and under investigation after the Oct. 15 incident, according to the department.
Watch NBC6 free wherever you are
The video of the incident lasts about 40 seconds and has no audio. The patient — identified in a police report as Antonio Cruz — was brought to the ER at Jackson Memorial Hospital after consuming cocaine and heroin.
According to police, Cruz was "agitated and screaming to the rescue personnel." In the video, he's seen spitting in the direction of Webster's face.
Get local news you need to know to start your day with NBC 6's News Headlines newsletter.
Webster then starts swinging, punching the handcuffed man multiple times as his coworkers try to stop him.
“If he never knew the consequence of spitting in a grown man’s face, then consider my actions public education and this video a PSA," Webster told NBC 6 on Tuesday.
The City of Miami Department of Fire-Rescue said in a statement that Webster was immediately relieved of duty following the incident.
Local
"Our department is conducting an administrative investigation while this individual remains in a Relieved of Duty status," the statement read.
Webster spoke to NBC 6 back in 2019 regarding an incident in 2017 when he found nooses hanging over his family pictures at the fire station.
"I want justice, I want to love this job again," Webster said then.
