WINTER HAVEN, Fla — Winter Haven Police released body camera video of an incident that happened around 1:15 p.m. on Tuesday.
Police said that the officers were called to Santiago's Market at 898 Havendale Boulevard for a fight in the parking lot between a 46-year-old employee at the market and a 29-year-old man who had a gun.
"Our response was heightened. Regardless if it's an armed robbery or an armed disturbance, our response was heightened,” said Winter Haven Police Chief Vance Monroe.
The 29-year-old man left the parking lot in a vehicle with a woman and a small child.
Winter Haven PD said they issued a BOLO for the 29-year-old and found him outside the American Legion at 300 Avenue M NW.
The body camera shows police locating the woman and child that was inside the vehicle. In the video, the officer commands the woman to get on the ground while pointing a gun in the direction of her and the child. Both of them raise their hands and comply with the officer.
The child is seen in the video face down on the ground for about a minute while officers place handcuffs on the woman.
“I'm sorry that that little girl had to go through that. The adults made their own bed, they can lie in it, but our children are our future. They do not deserve this," said Monroe.
WHPD said the officer responded appropriately to the incident and that once the officer saw the child, he pointed the gun in a downward position away from the child.
Some concerned residents believe it is time for the police department to make new policies.
“You can't tell me that out of three officers, somebody couldn't secure that child to safety. None of them told her to stand up. They allowed her to lay down on that ground like a criminal. Like she did something wrong. There’s a problem there," said Victor Sims.
While the chief defends his officers, he said they are looking at ways to mitigate these kinds of situations.
"We’re going to get together and we’re going to train on this and come up with a solution of how we can better address this,” Monroe said.
The store clerk is not pressing charges in this case, but WHPD filed a complaint affidavit against the 29-year-old for affray and improper use of a firearm. A complaint affidavit was also filed with the State Attorney’s Office for the 46-year-old employee for affray.
"I felt like it was really strong-arm robbery."
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