On Thursday, December 5, 2019, police from Coral Gables, Pembroke Pines, and Miramar engaged in a shootout. A jewelry theft in Coral Gables, Florida resulted in the suspect carjacking a UPS driver and holding him hostage. Police pursued the suspect all the way to Broward County, FL, when the vehicle got stuck in traffic. Police exchanged fire with the suspect, using civilian cars as cover. After the shootout, the UPS driver was dead, as well as two other bystanders. The UPS driver, Frank Ordoñez, was only 27 and a dad to two young daughters.

This situation was obviously mishandled by the police involved.

According to one account, there were no SWAT teams or hostage negotiators present when the shootout began. The vehicle was not isolated from surrounding civilians, who were innocently caught in traffic when police began to open fire. Although it is not clear whether the UPS driver or the bystanders were shot by police in an attempt to shoot the suspect, it can still be said that the situation would have been safer for everyone involved, including the police, had done things differently.

The tragic deaths of civilians highlight the need for a change in policing.

This is not the way that a hostage situation should be resolved. It is up to the police to change their practices in order to avoid more incidents like this in the future. As police forces in America have been repeatedly scrutinized, it is important that they adapt in order to prevent tragedy in the line of duty. Situations like these are harmful not just to their victims, but also to the policemen and women who are unnecessarily put in harm's way. The police need to rapidly adjust their behavior so that innocent people are not killed.

If the police want to change the public's perception of them, they need to change their behavior.