Val Demings

Val Demings is running for Congress against Marco Rubio. She is running this ad:

She is trying to run on her record as a cop, so she can syphon off some law and order supporters. Let’s talk about her record as a cop. She was the chief of Orlando’s police department from 2007 to 2011. Her husband Jerry Demings was Sheriff of Orange County, the county where Orlando is located. He is now the mayor.

While she was police chief, her department had constant problems with police officers committing violent acts against the people who live there. Like the time in 2008 when a cop pushed this woman down the stairs:

After pushing her down the stairs, he falsified her arrest report and lied about what had happened. Officer Trinidad lied in the arrest affidavit and stated that Jessica Asprilla spit on him and was intoxicated when she fell down the stairs. Ms. Asprilla was eventually arrested for Battery on a Law Enforcement Officer (a felony) and resisting an officer. Later, in a deposition, Officer Trinidad stated that she intentionally threw herself down the stairs. Because it was caught on film, the charges against the woman were dropped, and the department had to discipline the officer.

The woman wound up suing the department, but complained that she would frequently have cops follow her in plain clothes, sometimes telling her to “watch your back.” One of those instances was actually caught on film during a news interview. She won her lawsuit, but was only awarded $4700- the amount of her medical bills. The officer still works for the OPD.

The Internal Affairs unit declared that he should receive a 16 hour unpaid suspension, by way of having two vacation days taken away. Chief Demings decided that the punishment should be reduced to one vacation day. For felony battery and perjury.

Even worse, the Orlando Police Department was in possession of the video of Officer Trinidad’s actions and never turned it over to the State Attorney’s office so they could make a proper decision whether to charge Jessica Asprilla for the allegations made by Officer Trinidad. The chief herself lied and covered for the rogue cop’s actions.

Demings also once had her service handgun stolen from her police vehicle back in 2009, even though city policy prohibited storing firearms in unattended police vehicles. She disciplined herself by sending herself a strongly worded letter. Her excuse was that she had children visiting her and wanted to keep it secure. Apparently, a house with 2 high ranking cops in it can’t afford a gun safe or even a lock box. The story has since been washed from Orlando media archives.

There was also the case of Daniel Daley, the 84 year old World War 2 veteran with no criminal record who walked with a walker. He was thrown to the ground by an OPD officer so hard that his neck was broken. His offense? He was arguing with a cop who said that he was illegally parked. Witnesses said the man was not aggressive. He sued and won $880,000 for that attack.

“The punishments were so minimal and so light for so many years, probably preceding Val Demings, that officers basically had impunity to punish people and get away with it,” said one local attorney. I can believe it. Don’t forget that she was one of the leading candidates to be Biden’s running mate in 2020. Here is a great example of OPD’s culture: