Miami officers will not be facing charges in 2025 nightclub shooting that killed gunman and bystander, SAO says
The Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office announced Friday that three City of Miami police officers would not be facing any criminal charges after a 2025 shooting outside a Wynwood nightclub that left an armed man and an innocent female bystander dead.
State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle concluded that Sgt. José Cabrera, Sgt. Javier Herbello, and Officer Dorian Acosta were legally justified in using deadly force in connection with the June 14, 2025, incident.
The shooting resulted in the death of Norman Lindo Jr., 30, the gunman, and Evelyn Valdes, 28, who was an innocent bystander celebrating her birthday in a nearby vehicle. The nightclub manager, John Fortini, was also injured in the crossfire.
Valdes's family, who filed a civil lawsuit against the City of Miami and others, met with prosecutors last week and issued a statement to CBS News Miami expressing their disappointment with the final decision.
"The family is disappointed in the State Attorney's Office's decision not to charge the police officers involved in this shooting. The non-prosecution decision was delivered to the family prior to turnover of any files, which, as of this writing, has yet to occur. The lack of transparency has added to the family's disappointment," the family's attorney, Ramon Rasco, said.
"The State Attorney's Office may close the investigation into the vicious and gratuitous police shooting that killed my daughter. The office's decision, however, will not close her life, her achievements, or the love she gave to everyone she touched. The office's close-out memo will not be the last word on Evelyn," Kristy "Dee" Garcia, Valdes's mother, said in the statement to CBS News Miami.
Prosecutors detail the altercation that led to the shooting
According to the final investigative report, Sgts. Cabrera and Herbello were in full uniform investigating a pickpocketing complaint outside Electric 23 Wynwood nightclub at around 3:00 a.m. when an unrelated altercation broke out near the venue's exit.
Witness statements and video surveillance showed Lindo drawing a black handgun during an argument involving several individuals, including a professional UFC fighter.
According to the report, one of the nightclub's owners attempted to physically restrain Lindo and pleaded with him to drop the weapon, describing Lindo as acting focused on his target.
When Lindo evaded the owner's grasp and continued advancing while holding the firearm, Sgt. Herbello and Officer Acosta drew their service weapons and repeatedly ordered him to drop the gun.
The report said Lindo failed to comply, prompting Sgt. Herbello, Sgt. Cabrera, and Officer Acosta to discharge their firearms. Lindo was struck multiple times and later pronounced dead at Jackson Memorial Hospital's Ryder Trauma Center.
How Valdes was hit, according to the State Attorney's Office's investigation
During the discharge of weapons, Valdes was sitting in the rear passenger seat of a blue Mazda SUV stuck in bumper-to-bumper holiday weekend traffic directly in front of the nightclub.
Friends inside the vehicle testified they were leaving the club after celebrating Valdes' birthday when they saw the altercation and heard gunshots. Moments after driving away, the occupants realized Valdes had been struck in the abdomen by a stray bullet. They pulled over a block away and called 911. Valdes was rushed to Ryder Trauma Center, where she died from her injuries.
Ballistics analysis conducted by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) confirmed that the fatal bullet recovered from Valdes' abdomen was fired from Officer Acosta's service weapon. A total of 12 shell casings fired by officers were recovered at the scene, alongside Lindo's loaded handgun.
Nightclub manager John Fortini was struck in the left hand during the shooting and treated at the hospital.
What was the SAO's legal justification for not charging the officers?
Under Florida's Stand Your Ground Law, the State Attorney's Office determined the officers acted within the law, as Lindo was aggressively brandishing a firearm in a crowded public area, creating an imminent threat of death or great bodily harm to officers, patrons, and pedestrians.
"The tragic death of Evelyn Valdes and injury to John Fortini, who were both innocent bystanders, struck by projectiles, were not caused by criminal acts," Assistant State Attorneys Todd Bass and Johnathan Nobile wrote in the review.