Philip Stoddard, the mayor of South Miami, Florida, announced Wednesday that the city is conducting an internal investigation on its own police department, news sources indicate. Stoddard cited an incident where his close friend, Michael Davidson-Schmich, was arrested by the city's police chief in June. Schmich, 56, was charged with resisting arrest without violence. He later pled guilty to that charge. The mayor said that the incident as unlawful, suggesting that Schmich was targeted because of his friendship with Stoddard.
The announcement of alleged misconduct occurred during a South Miami City Commission meeting Wednesday evening. Stoddard accused Police Chief Orlando Martinez de Castro of making the inappropriate arrest. A motive for a skewed arrest, however, has not been isolated; not much is publicly known about the relationship between Stoddard and Castro. Schmich, who also spoke at the meeting, is reportedly a German native and literature professor with two children. Schmich said he felt violated during the arrest. "I don't know if I will ever get over this. I have nightmares. I have become a chain smoker," he said. "This has impacted me and my family. I don't feel safe in this neighborhood anymore."
Reports say the arrest occurred around 2:00 in the afternoon on a Thursday in June. Schmich was riding his bicycle west along Sunset Drive. At some point, he reportedly saw a marked cruiser make an unlawful left turn. Schmich extended his hand and made a gesture indicating the illegality of the turn to the officer, who turned out to be police chief Castro. However, unbeknownst to Schmich, the officer was responding to an emergency call and was legally allowed to make this normally illegal turn.