Florida Senate - 2013 SB 32
By Senator Flores
37-00031-13 201332__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act for the relief of Melvin and Alma Colindres by
3 the City of Miami; providing for an appropriation to
4 compensate them for the wrongful death of their son,
5 Kevin Colindres, sustained as a result of the
6 negligence of police officers of the City of Miami;
7 providing a limitation on the payment of fees and
8 costs; providing an effective date.
9
10 WHEREAS, on December 12, 2006, Melvin and Alma Colindres
11 called the City of Miami police department seeking help with
12 their severely autistic and intellectually disabled son, Kevin
13 Colindres, and
14 WHEREAS, the police officers who arrived at the Colindres’
15 home were supposed to have been trained on interaction with and
16 restraint of the mentally ill, such as Kevin Colindres, along
17 with appropriate monitoring of an in-custody suspect’s vital
18 signs and the administration of cardiopulmonary resuscitation
19 (CPR), and
20 WHEREAS, at the time of the first police officer’s arrival
21 to the Colindres’ home, Kevin Colindres was calmly seated on the
22 couch in the living room, and
23 WHEREAS, the initial police officer who arrived at the
24 Colindres house followed her training and the City of Miami’s
25 policies and procedures and approached Kevin Colindres in a
26 quiet and nonthreatening manner and the situation remained
27 stable, and
28 WHEREAS, the backup police officers violated their training
29 and the City of Miami’s policies and procedures by aggressively
30 approaching Kevin Colindres, causing Kevin Colindres to attempt
31 to leave the room, and
32 WHEREAS, the police officers then placed Kevin Colindres
33 into custody, handcuffing him behind the back and taking him out
34 of the house, where the police officers placed him prone on the
35 ground and applied a hobble restraint to his ankles, and
36 WHEREAS, in violation of their training and the City of
37 Miami’s policies and procedures, the police officers left Kevin
38 Colindres prone on the ground and applied weight to his back,
39 and
40 WHEREAS, in violation of their training and the City of
41 Miami’s policies and procedures, the police officers left Kevin
42 Colindres in this position in excess of 10 minutes, and
43 WHEREAS, in violation of their training and the City of
44 Miami’s policies and procedures, the police officers failed to
45 appropriately check Kevin Colindres’ vital signs, and
46 WHEREAS, in violation of their training and the City of
47 Miami’s policies and procedures, upon realizing that Kevin
48 Colindres had stopped breathing, the police officers failed to
49 administer CPR, and
50 WHEREAS, in violation of their training and the City of
51 Miami’s policies and procedures, the police officers failed to
52 advise the fire rescue department of the urgency of the matter,
53 thereby delaying the response by fire rescue personnel, and
54 WHEREAS, Kevin Colindres asphyxiated, causing him to suffer
55 anoxic encephalopathy, and
56 WHEREAS, on January 5, 2007, Kevin Colindres died as a
57 result of his injuries, and
58 WHEREAS, the police officers of the City of Miami were
59 negligent in their actions, which directly resulted in the death
60 of Kevin Colindres, and
61 WHEREAS, a tort claim was filed on behalf of Melvin and
62 Alma Colindres, as personal representatives of the Estate of
63 Kevin Colindres, Case Number 07-13294 CA 01, in the Circuit
64 Court for the Eleventh Judicial Circuit, and
65 WHEREAS, the City of Miami filed a Motion for Arbitration
66 that was granted by the court, and
67 WHEREAS, an arbitration was held and the arbitrator awarded
68 the Estate of Kevin Colindres $2,750,000, and
69 WHEREAS, the City of Miami chose not to seek a de novo
70 trial, and
71 WHEREAS, the court granted final judgment in favor of the
72 Estate of Kevin Colindres in the amount of $2,750,000, plus
73 interest at the rate of 6 percent per annum, and
74 WHEREAS, the City of Miami has agreed to pay $200,000 to
75 Melvin and Alma Colindres, as personal representatives of Estate
76 of Kevin Colindres, pursuant to its statutory limits of
77 liability, and
78 WHEREAS, the City of Miami has a private insurance policy
79 to pay all claims in excess of $500,000, NOW, THEREFORE,
80
81 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
82
83 Section 1. The facts stated in the preamble to this act are
84 found and declared to be true.
85 Section 2. The City of Miami is authorized and directed to
86 appropriate $2,550,000 from funds of the city not otherwise
87 appropriated, as well as insurance, and to draw a warrant in the
88 sum of $2,550,000, plus interest at the rate of 6 percent per
89 annum, payable to Melvin and Alma Colindres, as personal
90 representatives of the Estate of Kevin Colindres, as
91 compensation for the wrongful death of Kevin Colindres due to
92 negligence by police officers of the City of Miami.
93 Section 3. The amount paid by the City of Miami pursuant to
94 s. 768.28, Florida Statutes, and the amount awarded under this
95 act are intended to provide the sole compensation for all
96 present and future claims arising out of the factual situation
97 described in this act which resulted in the death of Kevin
98 Colindres. The total amount paid for attorney fees, lobbying
99 fees, costs, and other similar expenses relating to this claim
100 may not exceed 25 percent of the total amount awarded under this
101 act.
102 Section 4. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.