Warren

Teen dies after being hit with Taser

By Brian Louwers
C & G Staff Writer

WARREN — A 15-year-old Detroit resident died after he reportedly fled on foot during a traffic stop on April 10 and was eventually hit with a Taser fired by a Warren police officer.

According to Deputy Police Commissioner Jere Green, officers stopped a 1996 Dodge Stratus traveling west on Eight Mile Road, east of Schoenherr, on Friday morning after observing expired license plates on the vehicle.

The vehicle was reportedly occupied by two other people: the driver, a 19-year-old Detroit resident, and a rear seat passenger, a 37-year-old resident of Detroit.

Green said the vehicle’s two other occupants stayed in the vehicle, while the 15-year-old fled south across four lanes of traffic on eastbound Eight Mile and into a vacant home in the 20000 block of Pelkey in Detroit.

Warren police reportedly confronted the teen inside the home.

“He came down the stairs. He assaulted the officers. There was a struggle that took place,” Green said. “One of the officers Tasered him to get compliance. After that they noticed he was non-responsive. Officers started CPR until the Warren Fire Department arrived.”

Green said Detroit police also arrived on the scene and that the teen was transported to Henry Ford Macomb Hospital in Warren. The teen was pronounced dead at 10:17 a.m.

An autopsy had been scheduled, Green said, adding that the family had indicated that the teen had some medical issues, including asthma.

Green said the investigation had not revealed why the teen ran from the police.

“Absolutely none. The two occupants in the vehicle that did not flee couldn’t offer us any reason why, either. They were spoken to and released,” Green said.

The teen did reportedly leave the vehicle with a bag that had not been recovered by police.

“We got a report from a witnesses that someone picked it up,” Green added.

Per departmental policy, two of the officers involved in the incident were expected to be placed on paid administrative leave pending a thorough investigation into the incident.

Green said the investigation thus far indicated that the officers involved acted in accordance with departmental procedures.

“(The Taser) was appropriately discharged and used for the level of threat that the officers received,” Green said.

You can reach C & G Staff Writer Brian Louwers at brianlouwers@candgnews.com or at (586)498-1089.