Florida Cops Caught Using Black Men's Mug Shots for Target Practice

In this week’s episode of Florida Being Florida, North Miami Beach police were caught using mug shots of black men for sniper practice at a gun range in December.

According to NBC’s Channel 6 News, a Florida Army National Guard member arrived at the firing range for weapons qualification and found the targets, made of six black men, left behind. Twist: one of the faces riddled with bullets was her brother.

Let that sink in.

National Guard Sgt. Valerie Deant, whose brother Woody was arrested 15 years ago for drag racing incident which left two people dead, freaked out.

“I was like why is my brother being used for target practice?” Deant told the TV station. She called her brother, Woody Deant, who said he was “speechless….The picture actually has like bullet holes,” Woody Deant said. “One in my forehead and one in my eye.”

“Now I’m being used as a target?” he told the station.

Deant served four years in prison for his crimes and has moved on, but the North Miami PD, apparently, did not.

For their side, the cops were like ‘What? That’s not a big deal, you guys are soooo sensitive’ though North Miami Police Chief J. Scott Dennis did admit his team “could have used better judgment,” according to the Washington Post. Then he added the North Miami PD use all kinds of pictures of real people for target practice. Cool.