MIAMI (WSVN) - Protests in parts of South Florida calling for justice in the death of George Floyd have unfolded peacefully in the past two days, but local police departments are implementing new precautions in case things take a violent turn like they did during the weekend.
City of Miami Police officers have set up barricades in front of their headquarters in Downtown Miami on Tuesday.
“I’m hopeful that we are through the worst of it. It has been peaceful,” said Miami Police Chief Jorge Colina. “You never quite know how people are going to react to certain other things.”
Colina said they’re keeping squad cars inside their garages after several of cruisers were set on fire Saturday night.
“We’ve had officers who have been hurt,” he said. “We have an officer who broke her hand. She was struck by a rather large rock and will require surgery on that hand. We’ve had a dislocated shoulder.”
There are also barricades in place at Miami Beach Police headquarters along Washington Avenue. There are also dump trucks on each side of the station blocking certain entrances.
The Lauderhill Police Department in Broward County also has gates in place.
Colina said they’re putting measures in place to protect officers, and they’re also looking at how they can improve policies when it comes to inequality and racial bias in policing.
“I think something that sometimes is lost on people is that we’re you. We are just like everyone else,” he said. “We know, for example, that racism exists in the community. There is no injection or pill that you take in the academy that wipes away your biases that continue to exist. We have to do a good job in the leadership positions to weed those people out.”
Colina said they’re committed to improving the relationships between the department and minority communities. He is also dedicated to allowing the protests to continue as long as they need to but said officers will make sure they don’t get out of hand.
A 9 p.m.-6 a.m. curfew remains in place in Broward and Miami-Dade counties until further notice.
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