Miami-Dade Police officers charged in connection with a 2019 shootout with robbery suspects in Miramar that left a UPS driver and bystander dead were arraigned on Monday.
Officers Rodolfo Mirabal, Jose Mateo, Richard Santiesteban and Leslie Lee turned themselves in last month to face charges in the Dec. 5, 2019 shootout that left UPS driver Frank Ordonez and bystander Richard Cutshaw dead. They have entered not guilty pleas.
In Broward court on Monday morning, the judge set an initial status hearing for November 6, 2024 and a second status hearing for January 15, 2025.
A trial date was set for February 17, 2025.
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The indictment filed against the four officers was unsealed in June.
All four are charged with manslaughter with a firearm in the shooting of Ordonez, while only Mirabal is charged with manslaughter in Cutshaw's shooting.
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The indictment says the shootings were a result of "culpable negligence" and "without lawful justification and under circumstances not constituting excusable homicide."
Ordonez had been working the day of the incident when there was an armed robbery and shootout at a jewelry shop in Coral Gables.
The suspects took him hostage as they fled in his truck, leading to a pursuit that made its way to Broward County.
When the truck stopped in traffic at a light near Miramar Parkway and Flamingo Road, the suspects opened fire on officers, which resulted in an exchange of gunfire between law enforcement and the suspects, officials said.
The entire incident was caught on camera.
The 27-year-old Ordonez and 70-year-old Cutshaw, who was driving home from work, were killed in the crossfire, along with the two suspects.
Miami-Dade Police Benevolent Association President Steadman Stahl told NBC6 that he is disappointed with the indictment and noted that the PBA will provide lawyers and support the officers through the legal process.
“It’s going to have a chilling effect,” Stahl said. “The police officers are not the ones who should be held responsible for this."
In a statement, the Broward State Attorney's Office said a grand jury issued the indictments against the officers after hearing evidence presented over several months.
"Deciding whether to use deadly force is among the most serious and consequential decisions a police officer can make. We understand that these decisions are often made during intense and uncertain circumstances," Broward State Attorney Harold Pryor said in a statement Saturday. "The Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted an extensive investigation of the officers involved in the shootings and their circumstances. Given the enormity of the gunfire in this incident at an extremely busy intersection packed with civilian motorists and pedestrians, we presented these agencies’ findings to the grand jury."
Relatives of Ordonez spoke after the indictments were announced, saying the years since his death have felt eternal.
“It’s been a long four years of suffering and waiting and waiting. More than four years, grieving,” Joe Merino, Ordonez’s stepfather, said. “We miss him. We all miss him. We miss him not being around.”
"I just hope that there’s justice. I really do," Ordonez's sister Genevie Merino said. "We all want closure and peace. We haven’t had that."
