When James Lake spotted a group of people being arrested by Orlando police on the corner of Central Boulevard and Orange Avenue early Labor Day morning, he pulled out his cellphone and began recording.
That moment, captured on a 37-second video that circulated on social media last week, showed one officer ordering bystanders to step away while carrying pepper spray in his hand. “Everybody needs to get back,” the officer barked. “Get back and get out of the roadway.”
“Yes sir, yes sir. We are cooperating, we are cooperating,” replied Lake as he began moving backward while still recording. But then, the officer sprayed him, and the final seconds of the video show Lake running away before cutting out.
Now, Lake faces charges under Florida’s “Halo Law,” a second-degree misdemeanor that went into effect Jan. 1 requiring a 25-foot buffer between observers and first responders who verbally warn them to step away. He’s additionally charged with fleeing law enforcement, resisting arrest and reckless driving, according to court filings.
Lake, 28, said he was arrested Sept. 8 and booked in the Orange County Jail after picking up his son from daycare. At the time, he said he was waiting for an investigator to be assigned to his case after filing a complaint with the Orlando Police Department. He was released Wednesday morning on a $30,000 bond, according to court filings.
Since the incident, Lake said he is undergoing treatment for his inflamed lungs, trouble breathing, a burning sensation on his skin and vision that remained blurry a week later, with doctors telling him the injuries may be permanent. Currently represented by a public defender, Lake said he is seeking a private attorney to eventually file a lawsuit against the police department.
“Officers have got to give people (time) to respond,” Lake said in an interview with the Orlando Sentinel. “But some officers are vindictive and power hungry, and that’s putting people in danger.”
In a brief statement, a police spokesperson said it is reviewing the incident, which took place around 3 a.m. on Sept. 1, “to determine if any policy violations occurred.” Lake’s arrest affidavit identified the officer captured on video as Edwin Rosario, who has been with the agency since August 2023.
In the affidavit, Rosario said he sprayed Lake and accused him of leading the crowd that gathered to observe the arrests of a man accused of smoking marijuana and three women for reasons that are unclear, “with the intent to impede or interfere with the investigation, and harass us.” It’s a claim Lake denies.
“I never led anyone to do anything,” Lake said. “People were around, but not because of me.”
Officers can use chemical agents like pepper spray, according to department policy accessible online, “when necessary to stop passive or greater resistance.” The policy further states they “should only be used in a direct application in those situations in which an arrest is likely” but must be reported regardless.
Lake ran off after he was sprayed and hopped into an SUV. Rosario wrote in the affidavit that Lake then ran red lights and at one point drove the wrong way down a bus lane before turning around and leaving downtown.
While it’s not clear what prompted some of the arrests that Lake was recording, another video that surfaced on social media offered another angle. That video showed the arrests of three people, two of whom — including a 16-year-old girl — were handcuffed after being tackled by police. The teen’s father told WFTV that she was downtown at around 3 a.m. as she was headed home from a night out with her sister, sister-in-law and cousin when police took them to the ground.
The video, which is about a minute long, also shows Rosario as he ordered bystanders to leave, but he is no longer in view around the time he confronts Lake.
The teen, WFTV reported, faces charges of battery on a law enforcement officer and resisting arrest, an accusation she denied. The Orlando Sentinel is not naming her because she has not been charged as an adult, and attempts to reach her father for an interview have not been successful.
The Orange-Osceola State Attorney’s Office said it has not made any charging decisions as to the other people arrested that night, and no other records have been made available as of Thursday.
