Firefighter Says No Regrets After Outburst Leads to Suspension

It’s not uncommon for police to handcuff suspects to hospital beds when they bring them to medical centers for treatment. That allows law enforcement to monitor them and ensures they don’t hurt themselves. A Miami fire station has relieved a firefighter of his duty after he attacked a police suspect handcuffed to a stretcher.

In October, officers handcuffed Antonio Cruz to a bed at Jackson Memorial Hospital while he screamed and carried on. During his outburst, he spat on Miami Firefighter Robert Webster. That’s when the city employee began punching the suspect multiple times as he remained handcuffed to the bed, unable to defend himself.

According to NBC 6, Webster is now saying he has no regrets about his reaction to the incident. He said that if Cruz didn’t know “the consequence of spitting in a grown man’s face, then consider [Webster’s] actions public education” and the video of the incident a public service announcement.

Local television stations recently published a video of the incident. The Miami Department of Fire-Rescue immediately relieved Webster of his duty. An investigation by the department into the firefighter’s actions is ongoing. Authorities charged Cruz with assault on a law enforcement officer; he is still in police custody at the Miami-Dade Metro West Detention Center.