A Detroit jury has found an ex-cop guilty of assault and misconduct for beating an unarmed driver during a traffic stop.
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Melendez was sacked in March as a result of the video, which ignited protests in Inkster, a 25,000 person Detroit suburb that is 73 percent black.
The defense contended that motorist Floyd Dent struggled with police during his January 28 arrest and said Melendez’s use of force was reasonable. Prosecutor Worthy had earlier thrown out the dubious criminal allegations against Dent, tacitly lending credence to the defendant’s account that that cocaine Melendez claimed to have discovered in Dent’s vehicle was planted.
Evans ordered Melendez to jail pending his December 3 sentencing. Melendez was sacked and Inkster agreed to pay $1.4 million to Dent, who suffered broken ribs, blood on his brain and other injuries.
A former Inkster police officer has been found guilty of misconduct and assault.
It is the elected officials responsible for providing and deploying those scarce law enforcement resources, not the majority of law-abiding police officers, whose conduct should come under closer scrutiny in the wake of Thursday’s Melendez verdict.
Oralandar Brand-Williams, who covered the trial for The Detroit News, said in a Tweet that Dent’s attorneys are “elated” over the verdict. A Taser was also used three times during the assault.
As Melendez approached with his firearm drawn, the officer said he believed Dent was reaching for a gun, or concealing narcotics.
The video tells the “entire story” of Dent being pulled to the ground and “beaten senseless while he was being strangled”, Donaldson said in closing arguments.
Dent, who admitted to driving with a suspended license that evening, was initially charged with resisting arrest and possession of cocaine, but the charges were eventually dropped.
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Dent’s attorney, Greg Rohl, said he would have liked to see Melendez convicted on the strangulation charge, but was pleased by the jury’s decision.
