MIAMI – A Miami-Dade County police officer will have to face a lawsuit alleging he shot up a car in a restaurant drive-thru to apprehend a suspect who wasn’t in it.

Three people thought they were picking up dinner in a drive-thru at Wings on Fire, at NW 66th St. and NW 22nd Ave. in Miami in December 2019. Instead, they had to fight off a man fleeing police who tried to enter their car, then speed off when Officer Juan Rodriguez started shooting at them.

On July 13, federal judge Rodolfo Ruiz II granted Miami-Dade County’s motion to dismiss two claims against it but denied Rodriguez’s attempt to toss an excessive force claim made against him.

Florida LawTV

Law TV®’s objective is to provide the best possible legal news coverage to the public in a manner that is timely, accurate, clear and easy to understand. We endeavor to remain steadfast to journalistic values and standards excellence. Our mission is to create the finest possible law focused news product available on the Web.