Criminal Charges Against Hillsborough Firefighters Dropped by St Pete PD
Criminal charges against two Hillsborough County firefighters who were arrested in a high-profile incident in St. Petersburg last month have been dropped, and an investigation started against one of the arresting officers.
The incident occurred in a bar in St. Petersburg while Hillsborough County firefighters Clint Walker and Robert Ramirez were off duty. It was captured on a security video that shows a highly decorated St. Petersburg police officer, Ruben Dejesus, tasering firefighter Clint Walker and then kicking him in the groin after he was on the ground, subdued. Dejesus also assaulted firefighter Robert Ramirez.
It appears that Dejesus mistakenly identified Walker as a suspect in an earlier assault that took place in the bar. The firefighters have retained an attorney who expressed plans to file suit against the officer and the City of St. Petersburg over the incident.
It would be interesting to find out if the officer had some reason for approaching the firefighters: was there a rational basis for his mistaken identification? Did they match the descriptions of the assailants? Were they acting in a loud, boisterous manner? Or was this simply another case of a testosterone-overdosed cop getting his fee-fees hurted by the mean old firemans, and using the prior assault as a “basis” for pummeling and Tasing them?
I would bet that the police officer went after him because he was wearing Outlaw colors.