North Miami Police Commander Won't Face Charges in Therapist Shooting

The North Miami Police commander who was suspended for allegedly giving inconsistent statements after an officer shot an unarmed behavioral therapist last month will not face charges, officials said.

Commander Emile Hollant was suspended without pay after he allegedly gave contradictory statements to investigators and command staff officers following the shooting of Charles Kinsey by Officer Jonathan Aledda back in July.

However, according to a memo from the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office Public Corruption Unit released Thursday, the accusation was a result of a "simple miscommunication."

In the memo, Hollant had said he was present before the shooting took place, but had returned to his police car to get some binoculars when he heard the gunshots fired by Aledda.

"Commander Hollant did not lie and there was no intent to mislead or obstruct investigators or command staff officers regarding his involvement in the police shooting," the memo said. "He was present at the immediate scene before the shooting and after, and his involvement is captured to some degree in police radio transmissions."

The conclusions are bound to cast further criticism on how North Miami city leaders have handled this incident.

As for Aledda, he has been placed on paid administrative leave while the shooting is investigated. Kinsey has filed a lawsuit claiming Aledda violated his constitutional rights when he shot him.

"They left him in the middle of the street handcuffed until the ambulance came while he was bleeding out," Kinsey's attorney, Hilton Napoleon, told NBC 6. "He did everything that he could possibly do and he tried to assist the police and when this happened to him it was a shock for all of us."

Kinsey is seeking damages, but Napoleon wouldn't specify the amount.

"We're looking in the range for what has been similarly offered throughout the country in police-involved shootings especially in a case like this where a man is as cooperative and as innocent as you possibly can be," he said.