City of Miami, Florida ARTHUR NoRIEOA, V ani.FLORIOA 93299-0700 emeMAnAoen (208) 280-8400 rax(908)250-840 October 11, 2021 Hubert (At) Acevedo Dear Mr. Acevedo: Effective immediately, you are suspended from your position as the Chief of Police pursuant to Section 26 of the City Charter of the City of Miami, I have taken this action because you have failed to obey my orders and have taken other actions that indicate just and reasonable cause to demonstrate that you cannot properly perform your duties as the Chief of Police. Over the last twenty-three weeks the decisions you have made and actions you have taken have led me to lose confidence in your ability to effectively lead the Police Department. I am certifying the following reasons for your suspension: 421 ‘Art Acevedo was hired as the Chief of Police for the City of Miami 1. The Chief has lost the confidence and trust of the rank-and-file and, as of 10/1/21, the executive staff. Asa result, he has lost his ability to lead the department. a, Unauthorized threat to discipline employees who don’t get vaccinated. b. 10/1/21 witnessed his Deputy Chief verbally assault his executive staff after a commission meeting and did not intervene. ©. Vote of no confidence by the Fratemal Order of Police. 2. The Chief had an ill-advised interaction with a civilian which resulted i reprimand. a, During a protest the Chief interacted with a citizen protestor and used offensive language which violated departmental policy. a 3. The Chief offended the community by making the “Cuban Mafia” statement. a, The Chief made this statement to departmental staff and as a result alienated a large section of the department, his staff, and the public. As a new transplant to Miami, I expected him to understand the community which he is charged with protecting and a statement like that negatively affected the mission of the Miami Police Department. 4. The Chief failed to initially report damage to his vehicle even after finding out there was damage. He did not report the damage until 10 days later.Chief has terminated members of the City of Miami Police Department for failure to follow proper departmental protocols. In this instance, the Chief failed to follow proper departmental protocols without acceptable explanation. 5. ‘The Chief has on at least one occasion announced City policy without authorization to speak on behalf of the City of Miami. a. During an interview, the Chief insinuated that the City was considering ‘vaccine mandates and a potential dispute with the Governor to defend that policy. Both statements were made without authorization. 6. The Chief failed to report personal time/ vacation time. a. The Chief took twenty-one days leave time and did not properly report his absence from work so that his absence could be recorded in the City’s time-keeping system. 7. The Chief disobeyed a directive by the Manager when he made an employment offer which exceeded the pay range and other emoluments for the position, a. The Chief made an employment offer to Heather Morris where the salary and emoluments he offered exceeded those commensurate with the position. 1021| 8. The Chicf’s action plan to lead the department moving forward was materially deficient. The two significant problems in the department are officer morale and community relations. a. The Chief's self-evaluation did not recognize the reality of the morale problem. b. The Chief's action plan did not acknowledge the strained community relations. c. The Chief presented no significant plan to solve either problem. We have an obligation to deliver the highest level of professional law enforcement to the people of the City of Miami. In my view, there are problems with your leadership of the City of Miami Police Department which have been created and fostered over your twenty-three-week tenure, Instead of taking the time to first commit yourself to developing and fostering trust both within the department and the community, you were brash and hasty in many of your comments and actions. Many of these problems could have been avoided had you made the effort to understand and cultivate key relationships and establish trust. With that said, I directed you to provide me with an action plan so that I could determine whether you had the requisite accountability and vision to lead the Department moving forward. The action plan was materially deficient in that it did not acknowledge the existence of the officer morale and community relations problems. Given everything that has happened I am suspending you pursuant to the City’s Charter.Chief Acevedo you are hereby suspended. During the time of your suspension, you may not issue any commands, orders, or directives, remove or destroy any records, materials, or equipment of the City of Miami, use any City equipment, enter the premises of any City of Miami Police Facilities, or exercise direction or control in any way over the Police Force of the City of Miami and its members. I shall immediately certify to the City Commission my decision to suspend you and the cause for the suspension. The City Commission will within five (5) days from the date of receipt of my notice, shall proceed to hear such charges and render judgment thereon, If after a full hearing the Commission determines the charges are well grounded, then the Commission will enter its affirmative judgment, which is final, When the affirmative judgment of the Commission is entered, your suspension immediately becomes a removal but, if the judgment of the Copgmnission is in the negative the suspension ceases and you will be reinstated. ‘Arthur N KY City Manager Angela Roberts, Director, Human Resources Personnel File