Detroit Officer Who Shot Young Girl Faces Only Misdemeanor
In May of 2010, a high school senior from Detroit’s east side was shot and killed. Officers from the Detroit Police Department quickly identified a suspect and were granted a warrant for the property where they believed he was hiding in order to evade capture and arrest.
Officers and SWAT team members swarmed the property shortly after midnight. A flash grenade was thrown through a window to distract and confuse occupants. The first officer through the door was Joseph Weekley, a SWAT team member who came armed and protected with a ballistic shield. What happened next is a tale that no one seems able to agree on.
Weekley claims that once inside, someone grabbed at his gun, causing him to pull the trigger. But the woman inside the house told officers that she was simply trying to grab her granddaughter and get her out of harm’s way. She claims that she made no contact with Weekley’s gun. Weekley argues otherwise. But whatever happened, an undisputable fact is that the bullet shot from Weekley’s gun hit 7-year-old Aiyana, killing her instantly.
Due to the media storm that followed her death, there was a federal investigation into the incident to determine what happened and who, if anyone, was to blame for the tragedy. In October 2011, a grand jury indicted indicted Officer Weekley on a single count of involuntary manslaughter, which is a felony, and reckless endangerment with a gun, which is a misdemeanor.
Weekley’s first trial, presided over by Wayne County Circuit Judge Cynthia Gray Hathaway , ended in a mistrial as a result of a deadlocked jury. His second trial was scheduled for December 2013, but didn’t actually begin until September 2014.
But just days ago, three full years after the charges were first issued, Judge Hathaway dismissed the felony count against Weekley. The defense had requested a mistrial after Aiyana’s grandmother had to be conducted from the courtroom, screaming, but the judge refused, saying that she believed the jury was still capable of an impartial decision. She did, however, dismiss the felony charge, leaving officer Weekley with only a misdemeanor charge.
Hathaway then adjourned the proceedings in order to allow the Court of Appeals an opportunity to address her decision. Steve Fishman, Weekley’s attorney, was decisive in his belief that the judge’s decision should be final, saying, “The United States Supreme Court has clearly stated that the trial judge’s ruling cannot be appealed and that retrial on that count is prohibited by the Double Jeopardy clause of the United States Constitution.”
However, Wayne County Assistant Prosecutor Robert Moran believes that the decision cannot be final as a result of the Judge’s decision to stay the trial in the wake of the witness’ behavioral outbursts in court. “The people are asking this court to either grant leave to appeal, or reverse Judge Hathaway’s order … and order that the charge of involuntary manslaughter be reinstated.”
It remains to be seen what direction this case will take, and what the Court of Appeals will decide with regard to Officer Weekley’s charges.