by TChris

In 1995, Miami police officers shot two fleeing suspects in the back and then planted guns near their bodies. After years of investigation, a partially successful federal prosecution that charged a pattern of planting guns during four police shootings from 1995 to 1997, a four week trial and three days of deliberations, three officers were convicted for their roles in covering up the truth.

Lt. Israel Gonzalez and Officer Jorge Garcia face up to 10 years in prison for committing perjury to a grand jury and obstructing justice by lying in sworn depositions and conspiracy. Sgt. Jose Quintero faces up to five years for conspiracy for planting one of the guns.

Suspicions were raised when the guns were examined: they had no fingerprints, and one was loaded with the wrong ammunition. The outcry that followed led to important changes.

All the officers belonged to elite plainclothes units when the department was under international pressure to halt a string of deadly tourist robberies. The scandal over the shootings rocked the department and scarred its image, ushering in a new police chief, new shooting policies and a civilian review board.