Police in north Miami are reportedly under fire after using mugshots of African-American men for target practice.
A Florida National Guard sergeant was shocked when she saw her brother was among the six bullet-riddled faces when she visited a gun range last month, according to WTVJ-TV.
Sgt. Valerie Deant visited a shooting range in Medley, Fla., in December with fellow soldiers for annual weapons training, the station reported.
While at the shooting range, Deant and the other soldiers reportedly discovered mug shots of African American men that North Miami Beach Police snipers had used for target practice before the guardsmen arrived.
Deant told the station she was stunned when she saw her brother's mugshot, taken 15 years ago, with bullet holes in it. Deant's brother, Woody, was arrested as a teenager in 2000 for his involvement in a drag race that left two people dead. After serving four years in prison, he turned his life around upon his release in 2004, according to the station.
North Miami Beach Police Chief J. Scott Dennis told the station that his officers could have exercised better judgment, but rejected any suggestion of racial profiling.
"Our policies were not violated," Dennis told WTVJ-TV. "There is no discipline forthcoming from the individuals who were involved with this."
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