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Deputy’s shooting prompts closer look at traffic stops

By Robert Nolin
South Florida Sun-Sentinel

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. Traffic stops can be among the most dangerous law enforcement activities. A stopped motorist may be wanted or concealing drugs or weapons. The traffic itself places officers on roadside stops at risk of being hit by inattentive drivers.

But stops involving unmarked police vehicles, such as the one that led to the grievous wounding Monday of Broward Sheriff’s Detective Maury Hernandez, present special concerns and are discouraged by many agencies.

“A lot of departments have that as an ironclad rule: If you’re in an unmarked car, you will not make a traffic stop,” said William Gaut, a retired detective captain from Birmingham, Ala., who is a consultant in Naples.

The problem, said Gaut and others, is criminals have in recent years masqueraded as police and motorists may not believe a plainclothes detective in an unmarked car is genuine. Many departments advise motorists to drive to a lighted, public area before pulling over if they’re unsure a legitimate officer is stopping them.

“When you’re in plainclothes and you’re in an unmarked situation, you may get people who question you,” said James Nardozzi, a criminal justice professor at Nova Southeastern University.

Hernandez, 28, was off duty and in an unmarked police car when he saw motorcyclist David Maldonado, 23, run several red lights along Pembroke Road in Hollywood on Monday, police reports say. Hernandez radioed he was going on duty to make a traffic stop. He did not activate his lights or siren, Sheriff’s Office spokesman Elliott Cohen said. Witnesses said Hernandez identified himself as a deputy and draped his badge around his neck when he followed Maldonado into a motorcycle shop.

“It doesn’t matter if a deputy sheriff or a police officer is driving a marked or unmarked car, it doesn’t matter if he’s in uniform or in plainclothes, all that matters is he clearly identified himself as law enforcement,” Sheriff Ken Jenne said. “In this case, Detective Hernandez did just that.”

Maldonado, police said, ran off, then turned and fired two .45-caliber rounds, one of which struck Hernandez in the head.

The Sheriff’s Office prohibits off-duty deputies in private vehicles from making traffic stops unless the violation is “flagrant or dangerous.” Similarly, Fort Lauderdale plainclothes officers are not allowed to make stops unless the violation presents a “clear danger.”

“You’re generally discouraged unless it’s something of a grave nature where there’s an immediate threat to public safety,” Nardozzi said.

Yet, the professor said Hernandez was simply following his instincts in light of a potentially dangerous situation. “The balancing act is these dedicated men and women have taken an oath of office to protect and to serve 24 hours a day,” he said. “It’s hard to shut that off when you see someone violating the law.”

Andy Scott, former Boca Raton police chief, said it appears Hernandez acted properly. “The actions of the officer were clearly within the purview of BSO’s policy,” he said. “The officer is doing what the public wants him to do and it may have cost him his life.”

Copyright 2007 South Florida Sun-Sentinel