DETROIT — "Look at the video," say the attorneys representing the families of Samuel Sterling and Riley Doggett, two people who were separately hit and killed by police cars last year while running from arrest in Kent County, sparking protest.
On Friday, attorneys Ben Crump and Ven Johnson announced they had filed a pair of civil lawsuits in federal court, alleging both Sterling and Doggett's constitutional rights were violated when law enforcement used excessive force against them.
"These cases present an opportunity to say, 'No, no, no. We don't allow police to get away with murder,'" Crump said.
Different decisions
In Sterling's case, now-retired Det./Sgt. Brian Keely has been charged with second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter. On April 17, 2024, Keely fatally hit the 25-year-old man with an unmarked police car in a Kentwood parking lot as he ran from the Michigan State Police Sixth District Fugitive team.
In Doggett's case, though, the Kent County deputy behind the wheel, Josiah McMains, was not charged.
On April 8, 2024, McMains struck the 17-year-old after he bailed out of the passenger seat of a stolen car during a police chase in Wyoming.
"I did not find basis to charge the officer,” Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker said in a press conference last spring.
READ MORE: Dual Decisions: Breaking down the differences in the Doggett, Sterling cases
Excessive force
At a press conference in downtown Detroit on Friday, attorney Ven Johnson detailed the arguments made in both suits, playing body and dash cam video from both crashes, claiming both Keely and McMains, while driving, made "drastic" right turns toward Sterling and Doggett, respectively.
"We know why it's happening in Grand Rapids, because [police] keep getting away with it," Johnson said.
Filed in U.S. District Court, the civil suits separately claim Keely and McMains used "excessive force," violating both Sterling and Doggett's 4th and 14th Amendment rights as they posed no "immediate violent threat" to police. Both suits also allege the defendants showed gross negligence.
"Look at the video. Don't close your eyes. Don't turn away. Look at the video," Crump said.
In Doggett's case, attorneys also name Kent County as a defendant, alleging the municipality is liable to civil rights violations and not entitled to governmental immunity.
The families of Samuel Sterling and Riley Doggett, teary-eyed at the Friday press conference, are seeking monetary damages.
"I can't bring my son back. Nobody can bring my son back," said Becky Wilbert, Doggett's mother. "But for [McMains] to be charged would be a piece of justice for us."
"You can't bring Samuel back," agreed Andrica Cage, Sterling's mother. "I had to come to that agreement that I will never see him again."
Doggett-Filed Complaint (Federal) by WXMI on Scribd
Cage Sterling Filed Complaint (Federal) by WXMI on Scribd
"Zero to do with anything"
On Tuesday, Grand Rapids police mentioned Samuel Sterling's name when announcing charges in a drive-by shooting from November 2023. While Sterling was not among those charged, GRPD said he was in the car when his brother, Dominike Sterling, shot and killed 32-year-old Darryl Yarber.
When asked if the incident would have any bearing on the recently filed federal lawsuit, Ven Johnson said it has "zero to do with anything" as Michigan State Police were not aware of Sterling's connection to the murder at the time.
"It's not only hearsay, it's gossip," Johnson said.
The Kent County Sheriff's Office declined to comment on this story, saying it had not yet been served the civil lawsuit. Michigan State Police declined to comment, too, directing FOX 17 to previous statements.
