The personnel jacket of North Miami police officer Jonathan Aledda does not include information regarding whether he was properly trained to interact with people with developmental disabilities like Autism, a RISE NEWS investigation found.
Aledda has come to national attention after he shot unarmed therapist Charles Kinsey three times in the leg last week in a North Miami street.
The Miami-Dade police union president said that Aledda was not trying to shoot Kinsey, but rather his autistic patient named Arnaldo Eliud Rios.
The jacket, which was released by the police department last week details Aledda’s history as a police officer in the city of North Miami.
It also shows some of the trainings Aledda received.
Notably missing from the document is any indication that Aledda received Crisis Intervention Team Policing training (CIT) from the Eleventh Circuit Court.
CIT is often cited by police departments as a top local training method for officers to learn how to deal with people with mental illnesses.
The training also includes a small section (one page) about Autism and other developmental disabilities.
North Miami police spokeswoman Natalie Buissereth said that roughly 85% to 95% of North Miami officers have received CIT training.
“If you don’t see it, it’s not there,” Buissereth said of Aledda’s missing CIT training certificate in his personnel jacket.
READ: Personnel Jacket Of The Cop Who Shot Charles Kinsey
However, Buissereth also said in a phone interview with RISE NEWS, that she would follow up to double check whether Aledda was CIT trained.
Calls to the CIT office have not been returned.
According to information found on the Eleventh Circuit website, CIT officers are pretty important.
“CIT officers respond to crisis calls involving possible mental health issues,” a frequently asked question page about the program says. “They evaluate and de-escalate potentially volatile situations and as necessary transport individuals suffering from a mental illness to community-based facilities for evaluation, treatment, and referrals, instead of subjecting them to immediate arrest when appropriate.”
WATCH: RISE NEWS report from the scene of the Charles Kinsey shooting
Aledda’s personnel jacket paints him as an ambitious and talented young officer who is always volunteering for extra responsibilities.
“Officer Aledda reports to work with a clean and pressed uniform,” A performance evaluation from June of 2016 reads. “He represents a good image for his peers and employees to follow.”
While it is not clear whether Aledda was trained in how to deescalate stations with people who have developmental disabilities, his personnel jacket does show that he is trained in a number of other areas, including as a member of the SWAT team and as a volunteer member of the Strategic Action for Enhanced Enforcement and High Intense Visibility and Enforcement teams.
According to a performance review from August 2014, Aledda “productivity” is “consistently substantially above his peers.”
For example, in July of 2014, Aledda conducted 26 arrests, answered 82 calls for service and issued 138 traffic citations.
For comparions sake, 1 out of every 68 people are autistic.
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Your Eyes Aren’t Deceiving You. Yes, That Miami Shores Street Is Painted With Pineapples
What’s New With This Story:
-The Street 98 project needs volunteers to help finish the street mural all day Friday. You can sign up online to help.
-Over 30 volunteers helped paint 10 intersecting pineapples between Miami Shores Auto Repair on the South side of NE 98th St. to Miami Theater Center on the North.
-There will be a kickoff party on November 11 from 5 PM to 9 PM.
-Some think that Plaza 98 could be a key element in the development of NE 2nd Ave as a viable downtown area for Miami Shores.
Miami Shores is not exactly known as a center for artistic expression in Miami-Dade County.
But some residents would like to see that change, as the Village’s downtown on NE 2nd Ave continues to develop.
That’s the spirit behind the Plaza 98 project, an ambitious but simple idea to turn a small section of NE 98th St into a “pedestrian friendly” gathering place for the community.
The project will prepare Miami Shores Village to turn the street into a programmable space that will host periodic community events, and a new destination for Downtown Miami Shores Village.
Throughout the day on Thursday, volunteers from the community could be seen painting a large mural on the street.
That mural is of 10 multi-colored intersecting pineapple’s that stretch across the road from Miami Shores Auto Repair on the South side of NE 98th St to Miami Theater Center on the North.
The project has been in the works for months and has backing from a core group of committed Miami Shores residents.
Among that group is Joe Clark.
An architect who has lived a few houses down from the Plaza 98 project, Clark came up with the street painting design.
Clark worked closely with the rest of the team to get a design approved with Miami-Dade County.
It was not the easiest feat in the world.
Read More: First Weekly Miami Shores Farmers Market Proves To Be A Hit With Community
Clark said that he had to submit numerous versions of the design to the county before they accepted one.
The original design was to be a large yellow pineapple in the middle of the street.
But Tony Garcia, the principal of the urban design firm Street Plans said that the county rejected it because it would be “too distracting” to people on the road.
Seriously.
Officially, Plaza 98 is a collaboration between Miami Shores Village, the Greater Miami Shores Chamber of Commerce, Miami REALTORS, and Street Plans.
Garcia and his small team at Street Plans have helped to usher in a new urbanism across the county.
Working through Miami-Dade’s Quick-Build Transportation Program, Street Plans has been given the go ahead to create 18 “short-term, low-cost” transportation improvements to neighborhoods across the county.
Over 60 different projects were considered and Plaza 98 made the final cut.
“The Village was proactive about it,” Garcia told RISE NEWS while he surveyed progress on the project with a paintbrush in his hand. “This is about getting the county to understand that doing something like this doesn’t cost very much or take very long.
Other projects being taken on by Street Plans include bike lanes, bus lanes, murals and crosswalks.
Dana Wall is the project manager for Street Plans.
She said that the goal of Plaza 98 is to become Downtown Miami Shores’ main, central pedestrian space.
They see the mural as the first step in a process that will lead to period when traffic will be closed down on the street for food and art events.
“It is an effort to reimagine how the streets in Miami Shores can be used for more than just moving cars,” Wall said.
Ines Hegedus-Garcia is a local realtor who has been very active in the Plaza 98 project.
“This is a project by the community for the community,” Hegedus-Garcia said. “This is one of those true community building projects where everyone that wants to help is welcomed and encouraged.”
You can help finish painting the Plaza 98 mural on Friday between 8 AM and 6 PM.
You can sign up for a shift online.
RISE NEWS is Miami Shores’ hometown news-source… and South Florida’s digital magazine. Follow us on Facebook to make sure you never miss a story!
Watch More: Greenpeace has invaded Downtown Miami
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Tila Tequila Is A Desperate Little Nazi
Another day, another desperate celebrity trying to bring attention to themselves and revive their 15 minutes of fame.
Tila Tequila, who became famous back when MySpace was still a thing and we had a Bush in office, has upped the crazy meter on her antics to DEFCON One.
Read More: Tila Tequila Is Apparently A Nazi Now
In case you have either stopped listening to the news altogether since the November 8th Presidential Election, or you choose to ignore the growing white nationalist pride and racist rhetoric being spewed in this country, Ms. Tequila has decided that she wants to throw her hat in the race for craziest racist and modern day Nazi sympathizer.
Here is my problem with Tila Tequila.
She is a Vietnamese American sexually fluid woman who is named after a Mexican liquor who would have been exactly what Hitler would have tried to rid during his time in power.
She is everything white Nationalists want to get rid of. As much as she provides an outlet to spread the racist and vitriolic message that is promoted by the Nation Policy Institute, it also makes for strange bedfellows.
In an article in 2013 from Tablet Mag, they chronicle her journey from Jewish convert to her path to posing as “sexy Hitler” and openly and honestly explaining why she sympathizes with the man who proudly brought upon the deaths of over 12 million people who were deemed a problem and were not part of his perfect race.
Tila Tequila is not a credible person.
Having been a fan of Tila Tequila’s scandalous bi-sexual dating show “A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila” I can’t quite fathom how she went from being someone who was representing the LGBT community to turning around and supporting an ideology that wants to see the end of those who brought her credibility.
Her brand is extremely tarnished and now she will continue to spew whatever comes out of her very fragile, damaged brain in an attempt to bring further relevance to herself, without thinking about the long term repercussions.
Unfortunately in 2016, it is no longer about your message having meaning, it is only about the message you are putting out.
While Tila Tequila has had a rough go of her life since she hit peak fame during the course of her show, she does not have much to show for herself since. Her failed relationship and then death of her girlfriend Casey Johnson, her very public and nasty abuse lawsuit against former NFL football player Shawn Merriman, her attempted suicide and subsequent rehab stint, her numerous outlandish and offensive remarks about the Jewish people all paint the picture of a woman who is not mentally stable.
As a Jewish-American, I am of course baffled by the idea that white nationalist pride and the growing Nazi sentiment are becoming prevalent in 2016, but I am also baffled at people who are part of the “minority” lying in bed with the people who view them as lesser human beings.
Even though I am still a white male in today’s society, I also understand the struggles of those who are not as privileged as I am because of the horrific history of my ancestors, those who had to suffer so future Jewish individuals could live a better life than they did.
The growing anti-Semitism and white Nationalist pride and assault on free speech by those on the extreme right are damaging the reputation of this country, and the true reason for the founding of the original colonies here in North America.
Our settlers were looking to escape persecution and no longer live in fear because of their beliefs.
Now we have celebrities like Tila Tequila (and using the phrase celebrity is being extremely generous) being used by the very individuals who they support, especially if what is being supported is not well received or downright inhumane.
Read More: Watch A Young Barack Obama Rise In The New Trailer For Netflix Movie
America was, has been and will always be great, so if anything, we need to make America respectful again.
We need to make America tolerant again. We need to stop breeding hate and we need to be willing to turn away notions of racism, of sexism, of misogyny, of anti-Semitism, of xenophobia, fear of anything that is not homogenous with the dominant white patriarchy that has run this country for 240 years.
RISE NEWS is a grassroots journalism news organization that is working to change the way young people become informed and engaged in the world. You can write for us.
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Spend A Night At The Lorraine Motel For History And Progress
By Courtney Anderson
MEMPHIS, TN- The Lorraine Motel is a renowned institution that has both a dark and hopeful history.
Famous guests of the motel include Jackie Robinson, Isaac Hayes and B.B. King. At its peak, the motel was high-end, hosting the biggest black stars, politicians and activists of the day.
The iconic “Lorraine Motel” sign has lasted through history as a symbol for a safe place of black people to come and stay.
The motel is best known however for a tragic reason.
The motel, located on 450 Mulberry Street, is the site of one of the most famous assassinations in the whole of human history.
In 1968, Dr. Martin Luther King came to Memphis for the Sanitation Worker’s Strike. On April 3, 1968, King gave his famous “I’ve Been to the Mountain Speech,” in which he urged sanitation workers to keep pushing forward for their rights. King did not want the fight to end in Memphis.
But King’s fight did end in Memphis. On April 4, 1968, King was assassinated on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel. From then on, the Lorraine Motel was known as the place where King drew his last breath.
Following King’s death, the Lorraine Motel fell on extremely hard times. Its owner, Walter Bailey, was unable to continue to pay for it and declared bankruptcy in 1982. The motel was about to be shut down, until an organization called “Save the Lorraine” bought it for a measly $144,000. It was then that the motel would be prepped to take on its new life.
Years later, the Lorraine Motel became home to and one of the most attended attractions of the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis.
The room where King stayed, room 306, has been preserved. The museum is filled with interactive exhibits, movies and artifacts from the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s. Attendance is free on Mondays, so that more of the public can wander through the halls of history.
The museum has been home to many events and speakers, including a poetry reading and interview with the poet, Nikki Giovanni, and a reading festival hosted by actress Kathy Bates and activist Ruby Bridges, the first black person to integrate a school after the Brown v. Board of Education decision.
The spot where MLK was shot and killed. Photo Credit: Mr. Littlehand/ Flickr (CC By 2.0)
And on June 4, 2016, the museum is hosting another historical event.
The National Civil Rights Museum is hosting the “Night at the Lorraine” event from 7:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.
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Organized by museum employee Jeanette O’Bryant, the event is being held to “celebrate the vibrant history of the Lorraine Motel for the benefit of the National Civil Rights Museum.”
The event will feature live music, food catered by Memphis restaurants, a silent auction and tours of the museum.
Those who attend the event will be able to see how well-preserved everything is.
The 1959 Dodge Royal and 1968 Cadillac are still parked outside, right underneath the white wreath that hangs from of the balcony where King died.
The font of the “Lorraine Motel” sign is still the same and so are the colors. The song Mahalia Jackson sung at King’s funeral still plays in room 306 and the adjacent hallway.
But the history isn’t the only thing attendees will see.
Event volunteer Nicole Gates, who initially heard about “Night at the Lorraine” through email, says the museum has seen some upgrades. Gates said it sounded like a “really fun” event that could show off new aspects of the museum and motel.
“I think it’s a great idea getting Memphians out to see this amazing renovation and walk through of the civil rights movement,” Gates said in an interview with RISE NEWS. “Having this event at night will expose more people to the newly renovated venue.”
According to the National Civil Rights Museum website, renovations began in 2013 and have cost over $27.5 million.
The online description of the updates states that the changes, “reminds visitors of its charge to keep pushing civil rights issues forward.”
Gates said she hopes this event will encourage native Memphians to visit the museum, the Lorraine Motel and all of its history.
“Although I am not a native Memphian, I have been to the old museum and have seen the renovations of the new museum,” Gates said. “I find it absolutely amazing to meet people that were born and raised in Memphis, but have never visited the museum. I hope this changes the game.”
RISE NEWS is a grassroots journalism news organization that is working to change the way young people become informed and engaged in public affairs. You can write for us.
Cover Photo Credit: Carl Wycoff/ Flickr (CC By 2.0)
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