MIAMI BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) - Video showing a Miami Beach Police officer punching a man he was arresting at an Ocean Drive restaurant is raising a lot of questions and has triggered an internal affairs investigation.
The clip shows Miami Beach Officer Adriel Dominguez striking 35-year-old Lowell Poitier in the face at the Pelican Hotel and Restaurant on the 800 block of Ocean Drive, Dec. 3.
South Beach passers-by who saw the video said the officer should have observed restraint.
“He’s a cop. He probably could have held his cool a little better than that,” said Eric.
The footage shows officers asking Poitier to leave after, the arrest form states, the restaurant manager called 911 because he was screaming and cursing at guests.
Within seconds, Poitier walked up to Dominguez and shouted in his face. Dominguez then struck the suspect with his fist, knocking him to the ground unconscious.
Poitier was taken into custody and charged with assaulting an officer, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest.
Miami Beach Police Officer Frederick Dominguez, who is not related to the Officer Dominguez seen in the video, is seeking whistleblower protections after he released the video on Wednesday.
Frederick Dominguez’s attorney, Michael Pizzi, has contacted Miami Beach Police. He said his client believes this is an assault of an unarmed citizen.
“A young black male who was simply eating in a restaurant and was leaving and was complying with the officers’ demands,” said Pizzi.
When asked whether he thought his client was antagonizing the police officer in the video, Pizzi replied, “The officer was not justified in showing no restraint. He can’t go around punching out unconscious everybody with a bad attitude. Instead of controlling the situation and defusing it,, the officer started going mano-a-mano as if he was in a street gang situation.”
But what’s raising questions is whether or not Dominguez is telling the truth and if the punch was warranted.
The report states Poitier “clenched his fists, took a fighting stance and leaned into Officer Dominguez’s face.”
However, the video to appears to tell a different story.
“He never clenched his fist,” said Pizzi. “He did not take a fighting stance.”
Passers-by who saw the video agreed with Pizzi’s assessment.
“It’s not like he was making a defensive move because the guy attacked him,” said Tom Fry. “He was just kind of standing there and smarting off to him.”
“It’s so violent. It’s so unprovoked,” said Gary Donner.
Pizzi also said the incident should have been revealed by police right after it happened.
Miami Beach Police Chief Daniel Oates released a statement to 7News that reads, “This is obviously a very serious matter. At my direction, our Internal Affairs Unit immediately launched an investigation. We have also notified the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office. The officer has been relieved of his patrol duties. He will be placed in a non-enforcement assignment until further notice.”
“I think the police chief’s being honest. C’mon, we see it happen all the time,” said Fry. “Law enforcement agents all the time don’t behave to the standard they should.”
But the Miami Beach Fraternal Order of Police backed Dominguez’s decision to throw that punch. President Robert Jenkins issued a statement that reads, “There is no question Officer Dominguez was legally justified and fully entitled to protect himself. Like every citizen, police officers are entitled to protect themselves from imminent harm when physically threatened by another.”
In his own statement, Miami Beach City Manager Jimmy Morales said the city stands behind the police department to conduct this investigation to determine whether Dominguez’s actions were justified.
Wednesday night, 7News reached out to Miami Beach Police to interview Oates, but officials said the chief wouldn’t comment beyond his earlier statement.
Copyright 2025 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.