{"id":2608,"date":"2026-07-02T21:02:27","date_gmt":"2026-07-02T21:02:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=2608"},"modified":"2026-07-02T21:02:27","modified_gmt":"2026-07-02T21:02:27","slug":"body-cam-miami-cop-questioned-calvo-about-turning-on-police-lights-on-his-car-during-stop","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=2608","title":{"rendered":"Body cam: Miami cop questioned Calvo about turning on police lights on his car during stop"},"content":{"rendered":"<article><!-- --><!-- --><!-- WPS-5038 -- removed the script from WPS and added the placeholder for trinity player --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- CONTENT --><!--[--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Newly released body camera footage from the Miami Police Department shows an officer questioning Hialeah Mayor Bryan Calvo during a traffic stop about why the vehicle he was driving was equipped with police emergency lights and why those lights were activated after the officer stopped him.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=2606\">Inside \u2018Dancing with the Stars\u2019 couple\u2019s big move: They\u2019re Floridians now<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>According to Miami Police records, Calvo was stopped on June 14 at 11:09 a.m. on Grand Avenue in Coconut Grove after failing to obey a right-turn-only traffic control device and then activating red and blue emergency lights on the rear of the black Chevrolet he was driving, later identified as a Hialeah Police Department vehicle. The officer gave the mayor two traffic tickets.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Miami-Dade court records show Calvo has pleaded not guilty to both citations, which carry a combined $308 in fines. A pretrial hearing is expected, though a date had not been set. He entered the not-guilty pleas shortly after the citations became available online, two days after the stop.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>The encounter began after Officer Yasmani Gonzalez attempted to stop Calvo for making a left turn from a lane designated for right turns only. According to the officer, Calvo activated the vehicle\u2019s emergency lights after the traffic stop had already begun.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cIs this a police car?\u201d Gonzalez asked.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes,\u201d Calvo replied.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>He was wearing a black long-sleeve shirt with a patch reading \u201cHialeah Police\u201d and was accompanied in the vehicle during the stop by his girlfriend, Melianni Terrero, and their dog.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>When the Herald first reported on the incident, Calvo issued a statement through a spokesperson saying: \u201cI was issued two civil traffic citations while operating a city-owned vehicle assigned to me as mayor. One citation relates to a traffic maneuver and the second concerns equipment that was installed on a vehicle owned by and registered to the Hialeah Police Department, a vehicle that was retrofitted before I took office and before the vehicle was assigned to me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Calvo has not issued any additional public statements following the release of the body camera footage.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<h2>\u2018I\u2019m an elected official&#8217;<\/h2>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>When Gonzalez asked again if Calvo was driving a police car, he responded, \u201cThis is, I\u2019m an elected official,\u201d before presenting identification.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Gonzalez then questioned why the vehicle was equipped with emergency lights and why they had been activated during the stop.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou engaged your police lights for me not to go after you, after you committed an infraction,\u201d the officer told Calvo.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=2604\">\u2018We rescued people with our bare hands\u2019: Miami woman led aid in Venezuela quakes<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Calvo said it was his car, and then told the officer, \u201cI was pulling over because I thought that you were doing something.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Gonzalez appeared, based on his tone, to be frustrated with the explanation.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou engaged your police lights. That right there is a criminal offense; I can take you to jail very easily,\u201d Gonzalez said. \u201cI don\u2019t care if you\u2019re the mayor. If I\u2019m stopping you, and you\u2019re not a police officer, you need to stop and not engage your police lights.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Gonzalez then returned to his police vehicle to review Calvo\u2019s identification and registration. After a phone call lasting more than 16 minutes, according to the body-cam footage, during which audio was muted, he returned and issued the tickets.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou made an improper left turn,\u201d Gonzalez said. \u201cYou activated your lights after I conducted the stop. At that point, the lights didn\u2019t seem like it was an official police car.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Gonzalez added that, because Calvo is not a sworn law enforcement officer, operating a vehicle displaying emergency lights could carry more serious legal consequences.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cObviously, you\u2019re not a police officer\u2026 that could be a third-degree felony under Florida Statute 843.08,\u201d the officer told Calvo, who is an attorney.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>The statute in question relates to situations in which a person falsely assumes or pretends to be a firefighter, sheriff, Florida Highway Patrol officer, police officer, or some other law enforcement official.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>The officer also noted that in Miami, officials who use police vehicles are typically accompanied by sworn officers.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor that reason, you are going to receive two citations today,\u201d Gonzalez said.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Municipal attorneys told the Herald after the incident that the conduct could raise ethics concerns. Asked about that possibility, the Miami-Dade Commission on Ethics and Public Trust declined to comment.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=2602\">\u2018Recklessness is defined by the risk you create.\u2019 July 4th boating safety urged<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>The case remains pending in Miami-Dade court.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--]--><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The footage captures the exchange between Calvo and Miami police officer Yasmani Gonzalez, who warns the conduct could be a criminal offense. Calvo has pleaded not guilty to the resulting citations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2607,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2608","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-hialeah"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Body cam: Miami cop questioned Calvo about turning on police lights on his car during stop - Florida Moving Chronicle<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=2608\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Body cam: Miami cop questioned Calvo about turning on police lights on his car during stop - Florida Moving Chronicle\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The footage captures the exchange between Calvo and Miami police officer Yasmani Gonzalez, who warns the conduct could be a criminal offense. 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