A longtime Miami Dade College political science professor is no longer employed by the school after his arrest last month at a Flagler County hotel, where police say he was found in the lobby while a minor girl he allegedly drove there from Jacksonville was discovered hiding in a back stairwell.
Richard “Rick” Tapia, who taught at MDC for more than 15 years, was arrested on July 22 and charged with interference with custody of a minor, a felony, according to an arrest report cited by the Miami Herald. Per the arrest report, Tapia allegedly met the minor child through an app before transporting her from Jacksonville to a hotel in Palm Coast, the largest city in Flagler County, located roughly 290 miles north of Miami. The girl’s mother told police she had heard a man telling her daughter to get out of the room, and family members were able to ping the teen’s exact location before contacting local police, per the same account.
When officers arrived, they found Tapia in the hotel’s main lobby and the minor girl hiding in a back stairwell, according to the arrest report. Tapia reportedly remained silent during the arrest. Police also reported a pending investigation referencing a sex offense, and officers seized his clothing and cell phone as evidence, the report notes.
A 15-Year Career at Miami Dade College Ends
Tapia began working at Miami Dade College in 2010 and gained tenure in 2013, building a long career as a professor at the school’s North Campus, according to the Herald’s reporting. Before joining MDC full-time, Tapia worked as a teacher in Miami-Dade County Public Schools, where he served as a union steward, per The Reporter. A college spokesperson confirmed to the Herald that Tapia is no longer employed by Miami Dade College following his arrest.
Tapia has pleaded not guilty to the charge and has demanded a jury trial. Court records show his arraignment is scheduled for August 25 in Flagler County. Before this arrest, Tapia reportedly had no criminal record beyond traffic violations.
A Local Political Career That Predates the Case
Beyond the classroom, Tapia built a public profile in South Florida politics and civic life over more than two decades. He ran unsuccessfully for a Miami city commission seat in 2001 at age 21, according to the Herald. The Miami-Dade County Board of County Commissioners later appointed him to the county’s Planning Advisory Board on December 2, 2014, following a nomination by then-District 13 Commissioner Esteban Bovo Jr., per Miami-Dade County records.
In 2018, Tapia ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic nomination to replace former state Rep. Manny Diaz Jr. in Florida House District 103, losing to Cindy Polo, who went on to win the seat in November of that year. Florida Politics reported that Tapia secured about 35% of the primary vote to Polo’s 65%. His 2018 campaign drew major labor endorsements, including from the United Teachers of Dade, the Florida Education Association, the Broward Teachers Union, and SEIU Healthcare Florida. Tapia also dropped out of a race for a District 6 school board seat, according to the Herald’s reporting.
What the Charge Carries Under Florida Law
Under Florida Statute § 787.03, interference with child custody is a third-degree felony carrying a statutory maximum of up to five years in state prison, five years of probation, and a $5,000 fine, according to Online Sunshine, the state’s official legislative records site. The statute applies when a person knowingly or recklessly takes, entices, or aids in taking a minor from a parent or legal custodian without lawful authority, regardless of whether physical force or restraint was involved. Florida sentencing guidelines for third-degree felonies, laid out in Chapter 775, weigh heavily on an offender’s prior criminal record, which in Tapia’s case is limited to traffic violations before this arrest.
Several details remain unresolved as the case moves toward Tapia’s August 25 arraignment. It is not yet clear what the pending sex-offense investigation referenced in the arrest report will yield, what forensic examiners might find on the phone and clothing seized as evidence, or how the felony custodial interference case itself will proceed now that Tapia has entered a not-guilty plea and requested a jury trial.
