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By Grethel Aguila
Miami Herald
MIAMI — A day after Miami-Dade Police Director Alfredo “Freddy” Ramirez shot himself following a dispute in Tampa, Mayor Daniella Levine Cava has appointed two officials who will remain in the posts “until further notice.”
Levine Cava on Monday evening named Stephanie V. Daniels as interim director for the Miami-Dade Police Department and JD Patterson as interim chief of public safety.
Ramirez, who holds both job titles, is in stable condition after shooting himself on the side of a Florida highway late Sunday night following a dispute that forced his departure from a Tampa hotel where he was attending a law enforcement convention with his wife, according to multiple police sources and reports.
The 52-year-old is a Democratic candidate for sheriff in the 2024 election.
“Our hearts are with Chief of Public Safety Freddy Ramirez and his family during this difficult time. All that matters right now is his wellbeing and we continue to pray for his speedy recovery,” Levine Cava said in a Twitter post.
Who are Miami-Dade’s temporary top cops?
Daniels in 2022 became the first woman to hold the title of deputy director of MDPD.
The Liberty City native joined the department in 1992 and has moved up the ranks throughout her three decade-long career, also serving as an officer, detective and assistant director.
Patterson, who’s currently MDPD’s chief of corrections and forensics, has three decades of experience in law enforcement. He was the department’s director from 2013 to 2016 and later served as assistant police chief for the Miami Gardens Police Department.
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