On March 13th, 2020, former Tallahassee Florida Mayor and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum was present in a hotel room in Miami when police and fire and rescue were called for a suspected methamphetamine overdose. Gillum and the overdose victim Travis Dyson, 30, were found by another friend Aldo Mejia’s, 56, in the Mondrian South Beach Hotel late Friday night. Gillum and Dyson were said to be intoxicated and possibly under the influence of drugs when Mejia’s arrived.
Overdose with Andrew Gillum Present
The Miami police department and emergency medical technicians were called by Mejia’s once he discovered that Dyson was experiencing a severe medical emergency. Dyson was transported to Mount Sinai hospital, where he was stabilized and later released. During their investigation, the police found several small bags of what they believe in having been methamphetamine on the bed and floor of the hotel room.
The Miami police department incident report from the responding MPD officers Gomez and Maldonado states how upon their arrival, they saw emergency medical technicians providing treatment to Dyson for a possible overdose and witnessed Gillum very intoxicated. This arrest has put a lot of scrutiny on Andrew Gillium and his governorship aspirations.
Mejia was responsible for providing most of the information to the police about what had occurred in the hotel room and information about the gathering. The Miami police report was made available to the public per the Miami New Times publication. The police report points out what had occurred that night and that Gillum was extremely intoxicated and unable to communicate regularly.
Per the Miami Police department incident report:
Mr. Mejia’s arrived at the hotel at approximately 2307 hours, where he discovered Travis Dyson and Andrew Gillum inside the room under the influence of an unknown substance. Per Mr. Mejia’s, Mr. Dyson opened the door to the hotel room and immediately walked over to the bed and collapsed in a prone position. Mr. Mejia’s observed Mr. Gillum inside the bathroom vomiting. Mr. Mejia’s stated that he observed Mr. Dyson having difficulty breathing, prompting him to wake him up. Mr. Dyson then began vomiting on the bed and immediately collapsed again. Mr. Mejia’s began conducting CPR on Mr. Dyson and proceeded to call the police and rescue departments. Officers attempted to speak to Mr. Gillum, but Mr. Gillum was unable to communicate with officers due to his inebriated state. (Miami New Times)
Gillum has publicly apologized for his behavior and provided a statement to the New York Times, which says, “first responders were called to assist one of my friends. While I had too much to drink, I want to be clear that I have never used methamphetamines,” he said. “I apologize to the people of Florida for the distraction this has caused our movement. And I’m thankful to the incredible Miami Beach EMS team for their efforts,” he added. (New York Times)
No Criminal Charges for Gillum at This Time
The Miami police department is not pursuing criminal charges at this time. Gillum also told other media sources why he was in Miami, stating he was in town for a wedding. Gillum is a notable democratic politician and commentator for CNN. CNN did not offer a comment on the matter other than to write an article covering what happened. Additionally, no comments have been made from Dyson nor any further remarks from Mejia.
The facts are that Gillum may or may not have been a participant in why the police found drugs in the hotel room. The actuality of this incident in terms of addiction and the consequences that these disease causes are realistic. Drug addicts engage in risky behavior that repeatedly causes dangerous situations medically and legally to occur. The best outcome for all three of the men involved is to consider how their lifestyles may or may not indicate a substance abuse problem.
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