U.S. District Court Judge Donald Middlebrooks ruled that neither Bethany Guerriero nor Joseph Strzelecki used excessive force in detaining Ryan Gould on May 9, 2023, at a community pool at the Sabal Ridge apartment complex.
In a ruling on a motion for summary judgment, Middlebrooks wrote that Guerriero and Strzelecki had probable cause to arrest Gould and were entitled to both qualified immunity and immunity under federal law. He entered a final judgment in Guerriero and Strzelecki's favor on Thursday, Aug. 29.
Qualified immunity protects officers as long as their conduct does not violate "clearly established" constitutional rights, or rights that a reasonable officer would know.
On Friday, Aug. 30, Miami-based attorney James Slater, who is representing Gould, filed an appeal with the U.S. 11th Circuit of Appeals in Atlanta.
"We disagree with the decision and we will take it up with the Court of Appeals," Slater told The Palm Beach Post. He declined to discuss specifics of the judge's ruling.
Arbitrator recently restored fired Officer Bethany Guerriero to active duty
The ruling marks the second major decision to go in Guerriero's favor within the past couple of weeks. An arbitrator recently reinstated her to the Palm Beach Gardens Police Department after it had fired her in 2023.
In his written decision, Middlebrooks said he considered multiple factors.
“Having carefully considered the totality of the factual record, I do not find there to be a triable issue of fact as to whether the Defendants used excessive force.” he wrote. “As to the need to use any force, Officers Guerriero and Strzelecki had been dispatched in light of a 911 call that a white male was armed with a firearm at the pool.”
Middlebrooks also concluded that “it is clear from the body camera footage that Plaintiff put his right hand into his right pocket after being instructed not to. At that point, any reasonable officer who was called to a scene due to a man brandishing a concealed weapon would have been aware of the danger of a man reaching into his pocket after being instructed not to.”
Incident went viral on YouTube as arrested man protested officer's tactics
Guerriero and Strzelecki's encounter with Gould, captured in a viral YouTube video called "Innocent Man Arrested by Unhinged Cop," occurred in the parking lot of the complex along Military Trail near PGA Boulevard. Gould and a neighbor had gotten into a verbal spat at the community swimming pool, and both called 911 to report the other.
Guerriero argued that she didn't know which man had the gun when she pulled into the apartment's parking lot. Although Gould wore only swim trunks and Crocs, Guerriero said she thought he may have concealed it in his pocket or beneath the towel on the ground behind him.
She said Gould ignored commands to keep his hands out of his pocket as he reached into a pocket to grab a cellphone. Guerriero drew her gun and demanded that Gould get on the ground.
Strezelecki then brandished his Taser for 23 seconds before reholstering it. Gould was taken to the police department's headquarters, but was never charged with a crime or booked into the Palm Beach County Jail.
Julius Whigham II is a criminal justice and public safety reporter for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at jwhigham@pbpost.com and follow him on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, at @JuliusWhigham . Help support our work: Subscribe today.
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