(WXYZ) — Fieger Law announced on Monday it is filing several lawsuits against the City of Warren and two police officers who were involved in a crash that killed two men last week.
Around 5 a.m. on Sept. 30, two police officers in a fully-marked Warren police car crashed into a vehicle near the intersection of Schoenherr Rd. and Prospect Ave.
Hear from family members who spoke at the press conference in the video below
DeJuan Pettis and Cedric Hayden died in the crash. Both were inside the vehicle that was hit by the police car. The two officers were critically injured.
During a press conference on Tuesday, Fieger Law attorney James Harrington said they are filing several lawsuits against Warren and the police officers. The first case was filed on behalf of Cedric and his family, and they are working to the other lawsuit on behalf of DeJuan.
"I had a phone call from the hospital and as I sat down on the couch, turned the TV on and I saw a white Durango, I said God, that's not my son's truck, that's not my son's truck," Pettis' mom, Charisse Brown, told us last week.
WATCH BELOW: Surveillance video shows moments before deadly Warren crash
"None of us are doing good. He was a good young man," Pettis' aunt Valonda Green said.
"I had a good son. He has two kids," Brown said.
Pettis leaves behind 7- and 9-year-old sons along with his mom, aunt and cousins.
Harrington said he expects data to show that the police car was being driven at over 100 mph when the crash happened.
Hear more from Harrington during the press conference in the video below
"This was reckless, this was senseless, and these men should be here with their families," Harrington said in the press conference.
Lt. John Gajewski with the Warren Police Department said last week that while traveling on Schoenherr near Prospect, the officers struck the white Dodge Durango, which was attempting to turn westbound onto Prospect from Schoenherr. Police also say that the officers were not engaged in a pursuit of the white Dodge Durango or any other vehicle when the crash occurred.
Watch our report from last week on the crash in the video below
"We want to know lots of things, and one of the things we have done to ensure impartiality for transparency is call the Macomb County Sheriff's Department to do an independent investigation. We owe that to everybody here to make sure that the right information is obtained," Gajewski said.
The Macomb County Sheriff's Office said it expects to share results of the investigation in two to three weeks.
In response to the lawsuit, the Warren Police Department released the following statement on Monday:
The Warren Police Department would like to provide the following statement in response to a lawsuit filed against members of the Warren Police Department by the Estate of Cedric Hayden and the Fieger Law Firm. The Warren Police Department received notice of this litigation today, a few short hours prior to the press conference publicizing the litigation. While we know this is a hard time for the families of the deceased, and we all would like answers to many important questions, the only proper source for answers is the Macomb County Sheriff’s Office who is conducting an independent investigation into this unfortunate incident. The Warren Police Department has been fully cooperative with the Sheriff’s Office during their investigation into this incident. Careful investigation of all of the facts is necessary to ensure unbiased and accurate conclusions are drawn. As with any investigation involving serious injuries or death, both officers have been placed on administrate leave pending a complete investigatory report. The entire City of Warren sends our condolences again to the families of all involved and the community impacted by this tragic auto accident. We are also praying for the full recovery of the two officers involved, one of who continues to remain hospitalized for his injuries.
