Doral to discuss businesses late hours following fatal CityPlace shooting
MIAMI - Doral Mayor Christi Fraga said despite the violence, the city is safe.
"While an isolated incident for our city that's generally a safe city, we don't want it to become a common occurrence," she said.
Fraga said the city will discuss on Wednesday how late businesses should be allowed to stay open.
"It is important that we look at what are the pros and cons of this. At this point we just see that there's, at least in my opinion, there's just not enough pros," she said.
"Is it appropriate for these businesses to be open at the time that they are in a community like ours? Especially these establishments that are very close to residential communities. Our residents are concerned and their safety and quality of life is our first priority. Right now our ordinance allows, for example, for restaurants to serve alcohol until 1 a.m. and entertainment establishments until 2 a.m. Therefore, there may be an opportunity to really evaluate these businesses and look at the opportunity to make them more amenable to what our residents want and the type of environment that we want in our city," she added.
According to police, a fight broke out Saturday morning around 3:30 a.m. in the patio area of the Martini Bar.
When security guard George Alejandro Castellanos tried to intervene, one of those involved in the fight, identified as 37-year-old Jamal Wayne Wood, reportedly pulled a gun and shot him.
The bar's security detail then began to exchange gunfire with Wood, according to police.
"Officers who were working at the commercial establishment at the time immediately responded and there was an exchange of gunfire between the subject and the officer. The officer shot and killed the subject. However, the officer also sustained a gunshot wound to the lower extremity," said Miami-Dade police Detective Alvaro Zabaleta.
During the shooting, seven other people were injured: two women and four men, along with a Doral Police officer who was shot in the leg.
Two of them were critically injured and transported to Ryder Trauma Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital and HCA Kendall Regional Trauma, respectively. The other five, including the officer, were taken to HCA Kendall. One of the critically injured has since improved, and the other remains in critical condition.
The Doral officer, who was shot in the leg and applied a tourniquet to himself, was later released from the hospital and is recovering at home.
The injured have been identified as Lester Williams Gonzalez, Frank Jerez, Yaniris Jerez, Sonia Munoz Torres, Gerard Delaney, police officer Carlos Milan, and a police officer whose name has not been released.
The owners of the Martini Bar provided the following statement to CBS News Miami:
"Our hearts are broken by the tragedy that unfolded at our venue early this morning that took the life of a dedicated security guard and injured several others. Our staff, patrons, and this community are like family to us, and we are completely shaken by this senseless act of violence. We're working diligently to ensure that all those affected by this feel supported in every way possible. We are conducting our own internal investigation, as well as cooperating fully with all authorities. This trauma will be felt deeply by us all for a long time to come, and we are here for our community today, and always."
The city said the Martini Bar was able to serve alcohol until 4 am because they had received an extension.
Fraga told CBS News Miami's Peter D'Oench, "It is illegal to carry a firearm into a bar and this was not a law-abiding citizen that caused this and the establishment at that time was not doing pat-downs."
