DETROIT (WXYZ) — Amidst a surge of violence in Detroit, including two recent shootings directed at officers, internal police records show that officers are intentionally firing their weapons at the highest rate in five years.
In 2022, Detroit police officers reported firing their guns 23 times—more than three times what officers reported in 2018.
The 23 shootings stemmed from 6 fatal shootings, 9 non-fatal shootings and 8 incidents where officer’s fired shots that did not take effect.
Police unintentionally discharged their weapons 7 times that year.
“Officers respond to the force that they’re confronted with,” said Asst. Police Chief David LeValley. “In the last couple of years, you’ve seen a shift in how people respond to and react to the police.”
During a recent four day stretch this month, officers in Detroit were fired upon twice. On March 10, two Michigan State Police troopers serving a search warrant were shot while executing a search warrant on the city's west side. Both troopers are expected to recover.
Three days later on March 13, Chief James White said Detroit police officers were fired upon after responding to road rage incident on 7 Mile Road.
In an interview with 7 Action News, Detroit police officials stressed that the majority of force being used by officers is found to be justified and, in the instances it is not, officers are held accountable.
“How concerned are you that your officers are intentionally firing their weapons more than three times more last year, than just five years ago?” asked Channel 7’s Ross Jones.
“I am concerned about the fact that they have to,” Asst. Chief LeValley said. “Or that they feel like they have to.”
Each time an officer uses force while on the job—from forcibly handcuffing a suspect, to shooting them—it is counted.
The most serious force is called category 1, which can result in death or serious injury.
In addition to firing a gun, it includes every time an officer uses chemical spray on a restrained person or tases someone in a sensitive area, like their face or groin.
Over the last five years, the trend line for the most serious force used by Detroit police has climbed. While there were 27 cases of category 1 force used in 2018, that number climbed to 48 in 2022—a neary 80% jump.
“It does alarm me,” said criminal defense attorney Allison Kriger, who has defended clients on the receiving end of DPD’s force. She says the rapid rise in deadly force may very well be warranted, but deserves further scrutiny.
“How are these officers being trained?” she asked. “Are they being trained in the right way? Is the disciplinary process working?”
Each shooting or fatal crash is investigated by a special task force made up of Michigan State Police and DPD. Investigations last months or longer, and LeValley says the probes are not rubber stamps.
He said that in 2022, 20 force cases were closed and 9 of them led to sustained violations that led to discipline, like internal charges or suspensions.
While it doesn’t necessarily mean the force was improper, it does mean the officer violated policy.
While acknowledging that violence is surging in the city, some Detroit police commissioners said the increase in deadly force warrants further review.
“It’s something I would definitely want to look into, because that number is quite unique to me, and it is concerning,” said Detroit Police Commissioner Ricardo Moore.
How often officers use force is reported annually to Moore and his fellow commissioners, but until we told him, he said didn’t know that the department’s use force numbers had risen this quickly.
“That’s where the board comes in,” Moore said. “We provide the check and balance to the police chief...so that we don’t keep kicking the same can down the road, pretending this is normal.”
What’s considered a normal amount of violence, according to police, seems to be heading in the wrong direction. Already in 2023, homicides are up 17%.
Contact 7 Investigator Ross Jones at ross.jones@wxyz.com or at (248) 827-9466.
