Bodycam video shows woman sharing account of Mid-Beach attack; city commissioner proposes new safety plan
By Sheldon Fox, Rubén Rosario
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MIAMI BEACH, Florida (WSVN) — Officer-worn body camera video captured a woman sharing with police the terrifying moments when she was ambushed at a lifeguard stand in Miami Beach, and now a city commissioner is proposing a new plan in an effort to promote safety and security on the sand.
The victim told a responding officer that she was alone on the beach when she was grabbed by the face, her nose was bloodied, and she was told not to scream.
“He just came out of nowhere, and he just grabbed me from behind,” she said.
The victim’s chilling account detailed how a relaxing night turned into an unprovoked sneak attack on the sand in Mid-Beach during the 8 p.m. hour on Aug. 30.
The victim told the story told to responding Miami Beach Police officers on bodycam footage obtained exclusively by 7News.
“He just kept on saying, ‘It’s just sex. Shut up, don’t say nothing. It’s just sex,’” said the victim.
The disturbing attack happened at the lifeguard stand near 43rd Street.
The victim said she fought the assailant, and witnesses yelled for the perpetrator to stop, causing him to take off before police were called.
Detectives said the aggressor, identified as 37-year-old Randi Alexander Dawson, was eventually arrested.
The attack came a month and half after another beach battery that was much worse. 7News broke the story of a July 16 Beachwalk rape at 23rd Street, where a rollerblader was ambushed.
After the 7News story and surveillance video aired, it helped lead to the arrest of Keith Hill Jr., a registered sex offender from Illinois, on Hollywood Beach. He faces trial.
Luckily, in the unrelated Aug. 30 crime, the victim had the help of good Samaritans and also fought back, hard.
“You know, I bit him a few times in the hand, and I kept trying to fight him off, and I kept on screaming. He told me, ‘Stop screaming. It’s just sex,’” she said. “I started yelling for help. I was really fighting it.”
A Miami Beach Police officer who responded showed compassion to the victim.
“Where are you from? You on vacation?” said the officer.
“Yeah, with my daughter,” said the victim
“With your daughter?” said the officer.
“Yeah,” said the victim.
“Oh, my God. I’m so sad that this happened to you, you know?” said the officer.
“I’m just like in shock, you know?” she said.
The victim suffered minor injuries.
Dawson was charged with battery. He remains locked up as he awaits trial.
After this beach attack and the earlier incident on the Beachwalk, city officials are talking about changes and about beefing up security.
Miami Beach Commissioner Tanya Katzoff Bhatt has an idea.
“Having a call box that is linked into the police department, where they know where you are,” she said. “You can just hit the call box right away and say, ‘We need somebody to come right here, right now.’”
Katzoff Bhatt is recommending the “implementation of a blue light safety and emergency communication system along the Beachwalk and Baywalk,” kind of like call boxes on some college campuses, only more high-tech.
The call boxes might have:
Activation buttons, strobe lights and/or loudspeakers during emergencies Communication services that connect the caller directnyl to a dispatcher Location tracking: GPS to help first responders locate a caller, as well as audio and video monitoring Officials hope the system could deter crimes like the July 16 and Aug. 30 attacks.
“We have, for years, felt very safe here in Miami Beach and taking that for granted, and I want that to be a feeling that continues,” said Katzoff Bhatt.
The call box idea is far from a done deal. It still needs to be discussed within City Commission chambers, and the police and city administration have to consider it as well, to discuss cost and other hurdles to clear.
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