The People’s Tribune interviewed Hugh M. Davis, the attorney representing the family of Deven Guilford, a 17-year-old killed by police on February 28, 2015 in Eaton County Michigan during a traffic stop. The family has filed a federal lawsuit against the county and the police officer (who the prosecutor has already decided won’t be charged.)
People’s Tribune: How is the family taking this?
Hugh M. Davis: They are stunned, honest hardworking church going, police supporting people and simply can’t imagine that there son could go from flashing his lights at a car he didn’t know was a police officer and be dead six minutes later. Flashing your light isn’t a crime. The stop was illegal. Once a traffic stop ensued, Deven challenged the officer. That is no longer acceptable. You can’t talk back to a cop. As Deven continued to dispute the police officer, the officer became more agitated because of the challenge to his authority. Even though the cop originally said it was OK to record, when Deven started doing it, the cop grabbed him and pulled him out of the car, a further illegal act. He didn’t give Deven a chance to comply. After that, it’s not entirely clear what happened. A lot of people analyzed the video. One flash freeze sent to us looked like Deven is down on his hands and knees and the cop is pointing his gun at his head after the cop unnecessarily and illegally tasered him. The use of the taser made Deven get up and respond. The cop went to deadly force. The injuries to the cop’s face look very bloody in the picture. Once he was cleaned up, it was clear the injuries were not caused by wounds of someone receiving a blow-by-blow fist. The cop hit his face on ice. That is an important part we can prove. Secondly, the medical examiner and ballistics will show shots were fired from a different way and angle from what the officer now says occurred in his made up story. We will be able to prove that he is just lying. So it is almost incredible, but the challenge to the cop’s authority is what generated this homicide.
PT: Why do you think these things are happening?
HMD: There is no doubt that the criminal justice system and police operate vastly different toward minority and poor populations. The idea that this could happen to a kid in a community like this is an indication of where things are heading. Even though we have a façade of democracy and democratic institutions and elections, etc., it really is just a façade. The reality is we live in a police state. If you look at the budgets of every level of government, the largest single item is the military, cops, courts, corrections, probation. You don’t hear any politician talking about dismantling the military, demilitarizing the police, cutting mass incarceration or bringing the troops home. We have become an empire. You can have an empire or a democracy but you can’t have both. For there to be real fundamental change, the troops and cops are going to have to point their guns away from the people.
Lawyer discusses police killing of Michigan teen
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