A Sarasota police officer is under investigation after being accused of throwing food at a homeless inmate in cuffs.
Video inside the Sarasota County Jail shows Sarasota police officer Andrew Halpin throwing peanuts at a homeless inmates face, as his hands are cuffed behind his back.
Michael Barfield of ACLU Florida says it’s a disgusting display of bullying.
“It is abuse of a prisoner under Florida state law to engage in the kind of behavior that he is shown on video to do,” Barfield said.
The inmate is 44-year-old Randy Miller. According to his police report his address is listed to the Resource Center for the Homeless.
The director of the center, Bill Wilson, said Miller would come and go.
“He would come in and use one of our services like a shower or food or something like that and wouldn’t be here for very long,” Wilson said.
Wilson has spent over seven years working with the homeless. He says he has a different reaction to the footage.
“Obviously if they are in the police station they have done something to provoke somebody prior to arriving," Wilson said. "They are not there for visitation.”
Wilson says inebriated homeless individuals are often difficult for police to deal with. He says in this case the officer may have just snapped.
“I don’t know what his situation was," Wilson said. "They just do a remarkable job in a very difficult situation. So as I say, there is a larger story then whats being told and I think that will come out eventually.”
However, Barfield says the officer’s actions are inexcusable.
“The fact that a prisoner or a suspect is giving them a hard time, ‘may have,’ doesn’t warrant that kind of abuse,” he said.
Sarasota Police Chief Bernadette Dipino released a statement:
“I’m disappointed in what I saw in this video. Due to the actions I’ve seen on camera, I immediately initiated an internal affairs investigation.”
Officer Halpin has been placed on paid administrative leave.
Miller has been released from jail.