Just over a year after he was captured on videotape beating a motorist, former Inkster police officer William Melendez will find out his fate in a Detroit courtroom Tuesday for a conviction in connection to the incident last year.
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Melendez was found guilty of misconduct in office and assault with intent to do great bodily harm less than murder.
As if to make up for the lenient sentence, Wayne County Judge Vonda Evans scolded Melendez on his “Dirty Harry tactics” that he was known for throughout his long career, which included more than a decade at the Detroit Police Department where he earned his nickname.
Dashcam video showed Melendez punch Dent 16 times and was repeatedly played for the jury during his the trial previous year.
It wasn’t until after WDIV-TV aired the footage in March that Melendez was sacked.
Dent ended up receiving a $1.37 million settlement.
“You were so into your bravado that you forgot the eye of justice was watching you and recording this disgusting beating”, Evans said.
“The way you denigrated that man … you think no one would care about a lone black man. Boy, were you wrong”, Evans said, the Detroit News reported.
Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said Tuesday in a statement that “improper, predatory and illegal police conduct will not be tolerated”.
The sentencing guidelines called for a minimum of 29 months to 57 months in prison, but the judge had the authority to go with less time.
Dent accused him and other officers of planting cocaine on him the night of his arrest, a charge that was dismissed along with the assault on a police officer and resisting arrest charges.
The first charge carries up to a 5 year prison penalty and the second charge is a maximum of 10 years.
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It’s up to the parole board to decide when to release Melendez once he’s eligible after 13 months.
