PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. — National and state press freedom advocates are raising concerns following a confrontation between a Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office deputy and Local 10 News Investigator Jeff Weinsier during a public event at Haulover Park.
The incident occurred on April 11 during the Baynanza beach and bay cleanup attended by hundreds. Weinsier was attempting to question Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava about more than $60 million in taxpayer funds spent on electric buses that were later taken out of service.
Video of the encounter shows a man in plain clothes, later identified as MDSO Deputy Lester Aguilar, physically intervening as questions were being asked.
Aguilar did not verbally identify himself as a law enforcement officer and had no visible badge or credentials during the initial interaction.
The confrontation has drawn scrutiny from legal experts and organizations that monitor press freedom and government transparency.
The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, a nonprofit that provides legal support to journalists and advocates for First Amendment rights, called the incident troubling.
Jennifer Nelson, an attorney with the organization, said, “Threatening to jail a journalist attempting to interview an elected official at a public event is an egregious infringement on basic First Amendment rights. This kind of on the ground reporting is a fundamental part of providing communities with information about important issues, and incidents like this one risk deterring other reporters from asking questions of government leaders.”
The incident is also drawing national attention. Jennifer Dunham, a contributing reporter for the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, which documents press freedom violations across the United States, is reporting on what happened.
The Joseph L. Brechner Freedom of Information Project at the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications also weighed in. The project focuses on open government laws, public records access, and transparency issues.
David Cuillier, director of the Brechner Freedom of Information Project, said he was disturbed after reviewing the video.
“I watched the video and was horrified. This is PR spin gone wild, and unfortunately, we are seeing more and more of this across the nation,” Cuillier said. “This never should have happened, irrespective of the law and basic fundamentals of basic constitutional rights and liberty.”
Cuillier said the incident reflects a broader trend of government message control limiting access to information.
“In my research, I have found that government message control continues to restrict more and more information from the public,” he said. “In many cases, policies punishing government employees from speaking to the press are flat out unconstitutional, yet they continue to be employed.”
He added that increasing secrecy poses long term concerns for public access.
“Government secrecy continues to spread and close off information to the public. Today, if you ask the federal government for a public record you will get it only one out of ten times. What happens when it gets to zero?”
Cuillier also emphasized the importance of public accountability.
“No doubt they are operating with good intentions, but the public should push back and demand more open, accountable government. It is essential for our Republic, if we are to keep it,” he said.
Weinsier also shared the video with First Amendment attorney Thomas Julin, who has more than three decades of experience handling free speech cases.
“I see you’re just standing there with the microphone asking a question,” Julin said. “You weren’t threatening the mayor in any way. You were simply asking a question.”
“He’s not wearing any indications that he is a law enforcement officer. You don’t know who this guy is,” Julin said.
“It’s an infringement of your First Amendment rights to ask a public official a question,” Julin added.
The confrontation followed weeks of unanswered interview requests to the mayor’s office regarding the electric bus program.
Local 10 News has also submitted a public records request seeking the MDSO policies governing how plainclothes officers are expected to identify themselves when interacting with the public. That request remains unanswered.
MDSO officials have confirmed that the agency’s Professional Compliance Bureau has opened an internal affairs investigation into the incident. The agency says it cannot comment further while that investigation is ongoing.
Following the incident at Haulover Park, Levine Cava did agree to answer questions regarding the bus program.
Press freedom advocates say the situation underscores the importance of clear rules governing interactions between law enforcement, public officials, and journalists in public spaces.
The investigation into both the confrontation and the taxpayer-funded bus program is ongoing.
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