RIVER ROUGE, Mich. (WXYZ) — In a controversial move, the City of River Rouge is reinstating a police officer who was placed on paid administrative leave over a year ago.
The officer, who is married to a city councilman, was suspended with pay after she allegedly pulled her gun on another motorist after a fender bender in front of city hall.
Michigan State Police are investigating the incident that took place when the officer was off-duty. She reportedly denies pulling her firearm.
And while she is still under investigation, sources with close city ties said the police department has begun the process of reinstating her because they are critically low on manpower.
Reasons for the staffing shortage include the recent suspension of a River Rouge Police sergeant.
The sergeant recently came under fire after attorney Michael Fortner obtained body cam video footage showing the sergeant, who was ranked an officer at the time, violently pulling a teenager out of a vehicle and then aiming his gun at two other occupants of the vehicle.
Based on what the video shows, the incident, which took place during a traffic stop last year, began as a traffic stop.
Maliyah Clary, who was 17 at the time, was driving two younger cousins home when she was stopped by River Rouge Police.
Clary is asked why she's going so fast and if she has her driver's license with her.
Clary had a permit at the time and there was not an adult in the vehicle with her.
The sergeant immediately opens her door and tells her to step out. Clary, who appears to be scared and confused, said no and begins to say something else when the sergeant yells, "Get out of the (expletive) car."
The sergeant and another officer pulled the teen out of the vehicle by her hair.
"It's not the first time that he's had problems, it's my understanding," said attorney Michael Fortner who is representing the teenager and her family in a lawsuit. "And if he continues to be allowed to operate as a police officer, it won't be the last."
But that situation is not why the sergeant was suspended.
7 Action News has learned that he was placed on paid administrative leave in June, days after he allegedly struck a prisoner in the head with his gun.
The sergeant was not suspended after the encounter with the teen driver because her family reportedly didn't file a complaint.
Fortner said everything city officials needed to know about the incident can be seen on the sergeant's own body cam.
"When you've got a police department that is more concerned with covering up wrongful conduct on behalf of their officers, as opposed to investigating and protecting the public, you get you get those kinds of excuses," said Fortner, who added that he believes the police department needs federal oversight.
"Everybody is doing what the heck they want to do like it's the Wild Wild West or something.. It's a dangerous situation for anybody, quite frankly, to be traveling through River Rouge," he said, referring to people of color.
7 Action News tried to contact city officials for comment but the mayor and city attorney both declined to comment.
We were told the police chief was in the office Friday but that he was unavailable and he did not respond to our messages.
