A Miami Police Department officer was arrested over the weekend on domestic violence-related charges after authorities said she fired her gun during a dispute with her boyfriend, who is also the father of her child.
Officer Sthephany Canizares, 27, was booked into jail Sunday evening on charges of aggravated assault with a firearm and discharging a firearm outdoors in a residential area, according to Miami-Dade jail and court records. She was being held at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on a $5,500 bond as of Monday afternoon.
An arrest report states that deputies with the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office responded after Canizares called 911 saying she was being held against her will by her boyfriend. When deputies arrived, she reportedly ran away from them.
The boyfriend told investigators that the couple had been “having relationship issues for the past few days” and that he found Canizares outside holding a firearm. Fearing for his life and their child’s safety, he said he went inside to retrieve both his daughter and his own firearm from a safe before locking himself in a bedroom. As he went inside, he said he heard what sounded like a gunshot.
A few hours later, Canizares contacted authorities again, saying she had fired her weapon and wanted to turn herself in. Deputies recovered her firearm with a spent casing inside.
Investigators said the incident began after Canizares found “inappropriate messages” on her boyfriend’s phone. She was later pictured in a booking photo wearing what appeared to be a hospital gown.
The Miami Police Department confirmed that Canizares has been relieved of duty with pay “pending the outcome of an active investigation.”
Canizares, who once performed the National Anthem at a swearing-in ceremony for former Police Chief Art Acevedo and has appeared in photos with current Chief Manny Morales, did not have attorney information immediately available in court records.
