Michigan cop who used stun gun on man holding child suspended for 30 days

A Michigan officer has been suspended without pay for 30 days.

August 23, 2018, 3:43 AM

A police officer in Michigan has been suspended for 30 days without pay after using a stun gun on a man who was holding a child.

Ray Brown, 33, was shot with a stun gun multiple times and arrested on charges including resisting arrest and neglect of a minor last week in suburban Detroit, police said. The incident began with a squabble over a Crock Pot. Video of the confrontation went viral after it was posted to Facebook.

An internal investigation by Westland Police concluded that "the arrest of Brown was appropriate and was in line with the laws and ordinances of the City of Westland," Police Chief Jeff Jedrusik said in a statement released Wednesday. "I have also determined that due to Brown's non-compliance the use of a department issued taser on him would have also been appropriate. However I feel that the use of the taser at that time, while he was holding the child, was a questionable decision. We are all thankful that the child was not injured."

PHOTO: Westland Police Chief Jeff Jedrusik held a press conference regarding one of his officers using a taser on a father holding his baby.
Westland Police Chief Jeff Jedrusik held a press conference regarding one of his officers using a taser on a father holding his baby.
WXYZ

The officer who used the stun gun on Brown was not named in the police department's statement.

"This incident will give us the opportunity to review all of our use of force policies and our department's training of those policies," Jedrusik added.

The mother of the boy Brown was holding at the time of the incident told ABC News on Monday that police used a stun gun on Brown at least three times.

"I think they were way out of line," Nicole Skidmore, 28, said. "They could have handled the situation differently because my son was in his arms. They didn't care about my son."

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