MIAMI — The trial will soon begin for the North Miami police officer who shot and wounded the unarmed caretaker of a man with autism.
Jonathan Aledda is charged with attempted manslaughter and culpable negligence for the 2016 shooting of Charles Kinsey, who was trying to coax back his adult client, Arnaldo Rios, after Rios walked away from a group home.
A woman called 911 saying a man appeared to be walking down the street with a gun.
There was no firearm. Rios was actually holding a toy truck.
Officers arrived, and Kinsey reportedly tried to negotiate between them and his client. But the emotional ordeal ended with Aledda shooting Kinsey in the thigh from more than 150 feet away.
According to the Miami Herald, prosecutors concluded Aledda was not justified to shoot because other officers had already announced that Rios was unarmed, and two other police officers, who were much closer to the action, did not fear for their lives.
Jury selection, which was originally scheduled to begin Monday, is expected to start next week.
Aledda's attorney told the Miami Herald his client looked forward to proving his innocence in court.
As CBS News has previously reported, the Miami-Dade Police Benevolent Association has previously spoken out against Aledda's arrest.
"This is a political arrest. It has been politicized, the entire arrest. Officer Aledda took this job to save lives," Luis Fuste with the Miami-Dade P.B.A. wrote in an earlier statement. "Officer Aledda made a split second decision back in July and nine months later the State Attorney hands down an indictment for this. If it was so clear cut, why did it take nine months?"
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