Immokalee community plans protest outside sheriff's office a year after deputy shot, killed man

A year after a Collier County Sheriff's Office deputy shot and killed an Immokalee man suffering a psychotic break, the man's community continues to rally for justice.

Two agencies ruled the deputy was justified in his use of deadly force in shooting Nicolas Morales Besanilla, a 37-year old father of a then 12-year old son. However, the Coalition of Immokalee Workers believes it has waited long enough for justice and accountability from a sheriff’s office and county it says frequently leaves the community behind.

The coalition's plan is to deliver a petition with more than 1,000 signatures to the sheriff’s office at 3 p.m. Friday, the one-year anniversary of the shooting.

It will also stage what it calls a peaceful vigil starting at the intersection of Airport-Pulling Road and U.S. 41, and heading nearby toward the Collier County Government Center demanding Morales Besanilla’s death doesn’t remain with impunity and consequences for the three deputies involved.

Death 'preventable'

Lupe Gonzalo, a coalition organizer, said the incident that cost the father, who moved from Hidalgo, Mexico, to Florida 10 years ago, his life was “entirely preventable”.

His death is also an opportunity to advocate for more support and resources from the county for Immokalee.

Gonzalo said the sheriff’s office must examine how it handles mental health emergencies and it responds to those in crisis.

“The community is very discontent. And they’re not going to stop until there is justice to be served here in Immokalee,” Gonzalo said through an interpreter Wednesday.

“We want to be treated as human beings,” Gonzalo added. “We want sufficient attention being placed on the mental health needs of people in Immokalee. We don’t want to be treated differently when it’s convenient for the county to treat us differently.”

The sheriff’s office said it is aware of the delivery of the petition consisting of 1,063 signatures and prepared for the demonstration.

"This matter has been thoroughly investigated. A death investigation, a review by the State Attorney’s Office and an investigation by our Professional Responsibility Bureau all determined that the deputies’ actions were justifiable and were within both policy and the law," sheriff's office Media Relations Bureau Manager Karie Partington said.  

"Regarding any potential for a protest, we can tell you that we always have plans in place to allow protesters’ right to peaceful protest while also protecting our community.

"Any information beyond that is part of our internal safety plan, but again we can share with you that keeping our community safe is our top priority."

Investigation clears deputy

Investigations completed by the State Attorney’s Office and Collier County Sheriff’s Office Professional Responsibility Bureau concluded Cpl. Pierre Jean acted accordingly Sept. 17, 2020.

Records show he shot Morales Besanilla three times — twice in the abdomen and once near his pelvis —  early in the morning on the 600 block of Edenfield Way in Farm Worker Village.

Morales Besanilla, who worked in the fields of Immokalee as well in the packing houses, awakened his son, Nicolas Morales Jr., and told him he was “seeing spirits,” according to Morales' interview with the Child Protective Team contained in the investigative summary.

Morales Jr. said his father, whose toxicology report from the State Attorney’s Office contained no drugs and small traces of alcohol, explained a creature told him he was going to die and he then said he was chasing the creature outside. Morales Besanilla ran around outside asking for help, the report states.

A neighbor called 911 reporting Morales Besanilla knocked on their door with a shovel in his hand.

Deputy Brian Tarazona, K-9 Cpl. Nathaniel Kirk and Jean responded.

Refusal to comply?

The investigative summary states the 5-foot-4, 149-pound Morales Besanilla refused to comply with deputies while holding a shovel in his left hand and an unknown object, later determined to be landscaping shears, in his right hand.

Deputies stated Morales Besanilla dropped the shovel but not the shears as he ran toward them. Jean shouted in English for him to get on the ground, the investigative summary states. Jean shot at Morales Besanilla when he was within 5 feet of him.

A dash-cam video released by the sheriff’s office, showed Morales Besanilla moving toward Tarazona with the shears and Jean firing within 13 seconds of arriving at the scene. Kirk simultaneously released his police dog which latched onto Morales Besanilla and could not be removed for 57 seconds, the footage shows.

“I’m dying,” Morales Besanilla said in Spanish as he lay on the ground.

Vigil for justice:Immokalee residents demand justice at vigil for single father killed by Collier deputy

Deputy not charged:State Attorney's Office: No charges vs. Collier deputy who fatally shot Immokalee man

Young son's response

Morales Jr. is haunted by that day.

“Ever since that day I have been sad, lonely, angry, and grieving the loss of my dad,” Morales, now 13, wrote in a letter to the coalition. “There is not one day I don’t think about him and wish things could’ve been done differently to still have my dad here. I can’t sleep, I can’t think right, and I get bad flashbacks when I think about that night.”

Brent Probinsky, who is representing the Morales family, isn’t surprised by the State Attorney’s Office’s and the sheriff’s office’s investigations.

“First, who does the investigation of law enforcement?” Probinsky asked. “Neither investigation was conducted by an independent agency.”

He is spearheading the family’s push for an investigation conducted by an independent agency. Additionally, he is preparing a lawsuit to be filed on behalf of the family in the next couple of months.

“When there are mental health issues they should be trained to deal with those issues, to defray these issues,” Probinsky said of deputies.

Gonzalo hopes Morales Besanilla will be the last person suffering from mental health issues killed by deputies.

Wanting collaboration

The coalition's petition demands the sheriff’s office implement crisis response teams that pair police officers with mental health professionals to take care of the individuals that might need those services during calls.

“We need these mental health professionals to be accompanying these officers on the ground here in Immokalee on the streets as they’re responding to calls that take place,” Gonzalo said.

“Because if you’re in an emergency, it’s going to take a long time if you have someone out in Naples who is going to make it out here to Immokalee. We’re 45 minutes away. We need those mental health professionals to be ready to respond to situations here in Immokalee to be able to prevent future events.”

Gonzalo also spoke to the strong language barriers members of the Immokalee community face when interacting with law enforcement. There isn’t a lot of effort being put forth by the sheriff’s office to communicate with residents in their preferred language or services provided to those who don’t speak English, she said.

However, the coalition doesn’t want the sheriff’s office to be painted as its adversary. The organization hopes to work with the agency.

Gonzalo hopes Friday is an important step toward that goal.

“Our actions on Friday are to prevent future violence from taking place in our community and demanding that we are given resources to protect and to create a safe environment in Immokalee,” Gonzalo said.

“And, again, ensure there isn’t different treatment taking place by police officers to the residents here in Immokalee. And that there’s meaningful and lasting change.”