MIAMI — Former Miami Police Chief Art Acevedo only lasted six months on the job before he was fired last October, but he's not going away quietly.
Acevedo is suing the City of Miami and several leaders in federal court, according to the Miami Herald.
The lawsuit claims he was targeted after blowing the whistle on alleged corruption at City Hall, the newspaper reports. Acevedo accuses City Manager Art Noriego and three city commissioners of "violating his First Amendment rights and illegally retaliating against him" and tried to weaponize his officers.
“In particular, Commissioners Carollo, Díaz de la Portilla, and Reyes targeted Chief Acevedo because of his resistance to their efforts to use the MPD to carry out their personal agendas and vendettas," the lawsuit states, according to the Herald.
Carollo, Miami's City Attorney and the interim police chief told the newspaper that Acevedo’s claims are baseless. Noriega called the lawsuit an attempt by Acevedo to salvage his reputation.
When Acevedo took office last April after leaving his post as Houston police chief, Miami Mayor Francis X. Suarez called him the Michael Jordan and Tom Brady of police chiefs, AP reported.
The honeymoon phase ended quickly and when Acevedo's brief and stormy tenure ended, Suarez said his firing marked "the beginning of the end of an unfortunate episode for our city."
The mayor called Acevedo's personality and leadership style "incompatible with the structure of our city's government."
During the October hearing where Acevedo was fired, the city gave eight specific reasons for letting him go which included Acevedo failing to report damage to a vehicle, failing to report personal and vacation time and overpaying a deputy chief.
WFOR reported Acevedo also came under fire after terminating several high-ranking officers and joking that the "Cuban Mafia" was running the police department.
Editor's Note: The video below originally aired on Oct. 14, 2021 when Acevedo was fired.