A protester holds a sign referencing Aiyana Stanley-Jones at a rally for Trayvon Martin in Detroit on July 14, 2013. He insists he accidentally fired his gun during a. Joseph Weekley, a member of an elite police unit, was the first officer through the door of her home during a chaotic search for a murder suspect. The tainted relationship appears to be the only possible motive for the stop that night as no definitive explanation has yet to be given as to why Greenhouse was moonlighting, riding alone that night and decided to pull Few over. The bullet struck and killed Aiyana. But he was killed in his Tucson home on May 5, 2011, in a SWAT team assault gone awry. The Michigan Supreme Court last Septembercleared the way for a trial or settlementwhen it declined to hear an appeal after two courts ruled a jury could decide whether Weekley's actions amounted to gross negligence. This was an emotional case, the jury foreman told the media afterward. Joseph Weekley shot Aiyana Stanley-Jones in 2010 Officer charged with involuntary manslaughter Dominika Stanley, left, the mother of Aiyana Jones, seven, sits next to Aiyana's father Charles . This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Weekley says he accidentally fired his gun during a struggle with Aiyana's grandmother. As a medical device rep, it's common knowledge that we have a lot of "window time". Officer Joseph Weekley says the victim's grandmother grabbed his weapon during a midnight raid. Charges Dismissed Against Joseph Weekley, Cop Who Fatally Shot Sleeping 7-Year-Old. "I stuck my hands out the window. A former high school classmate of Dixon, Greenhouse had started messaging her on Facebook and had come by the house Few and Dixon were sharing at the time. On the evening of May 16, 2010, the Detroit Police Departments Special Response Team (SRT) prepared for a surprise raid to arrest a wanted man. The base salary for News Anchor ranges from $51,971 to $85,465 with the average base salary of $64,795. They were accompanied by a camera crew from a TV reality show called 'The First 48, but the midnight raid was recorded from the outside, not the inside where Aiyana was shot. This is Weekley's . The settlement still needs approval from the Detroit City Council. The only thing he saw upon entering the home on Lillibridge in Detroit was a "pile of clothes" on a couch by the entrance and a 19-inch TV flickering in the dark room. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. JOSEPH WEEKLEY, INC. JOSEPH WEEKLEY, INC. is a California Stock Corporation - Ca - General filed on August 12, 2003. That's wrong to me.'. He will serve the sentences concurrently. However, the juryand the judge did not buy it. He told The Huffington Post that he questioned the motives of officials who "zealously" went after the father of a girl shot by a cop, describing the prosecution's case as extremely thin. A Detroit police officer accused of manslaughter in the death of a 7-year-old girl will go on trial this week, as national attention remains focused on the militarization of U.S. law enforcement and police violence perpetrated against people of color. Two days later, the decedent's father filed law suits in both the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan and the Wayne County . Information includes the borrower, lender, address or legal description of the property . Aiyana Mo'Nay Stanley-Jones (July 20, 2002 - May 16, 2010) was a seven-year-old African-American girl from Detroit 's East Side who was shot in the neck and killed by police officer Joseph Weekley during a raid conducted by the Detroit Police Department's Special Response Team targeting a suspect in the apartment a . Local 4 News every morning. Belinda Robinson for MailOnline When expanded it provides a list of search options that will switch the search inputs to match the current . The only full justice would be to bring Aiyana back and I can't do that.". Weekley was first tried in Stanley-Jones' death last year; a hung jury caused a mistrial. Copyright 2003 by ClickOnDetroit.com. As the Free Thought Project has previously reported, this entire scenario could've been over a relationship. Report your Judge, Lawyer or Government Office, Report your Judge, Attorney & Public Official Today. # 22-13, Pg. She was in her pajamas. What exactly caused him to fire is still a matter of dispute. Mertilla Jones testified that Owens lived in the upper unit with her daughter, LaKrystal Sanders. Two days before the raid 17-year-old Je'rean Blake was standing outside a neighborhood convenience store when he was shot to death following a dispute. Jones had previously said the shot came from outside the house. Associated Press HuffPost reporter Radley Balko wrote last year that reality shows profiling police actions support a growing "police-industrial-entertainment complex": Over the last decade or so, the cable dial has been stuffed full of programming that serves to make us more comfortable with police units that treat neighborhoods like battlefields. Officer Joseph Weekley will return to court Nov. 21, and Wayne County prosecutors now have six weeks to see whether they will seek to have Weekley tried for a third time. Similar feelings were shared when police officer Jeronimo Yanez was acquitted by a grand jury after he shot and killed Philando Castile, . Nathan Weekley is the brother of Joseph Weekley, a former SWAT officer for the Detroit police force, who was reassigned after fatally shooting 7-year-old Aiyana Stanley-Jones during a May. They came to kill, and they killed a 7-year-old.'. City attorney Lawrence Garcia announced the settlement with the family of Aiyana Stanley-Jones on Thursday, April 4, 2019 four days before a civil trial was to begin. A man rides a bicycle past the house where Aiyana Stanley-Jones was killed in Detroit, Monday, May 17, 2010. Kelley joined the station on February 10, 1986, two months after graduating from the University of Florida. (Kathleen Galligan/Detroit Free Press via AP, File), Paddock Publications, Inc. is an Employee-Owned Company. DETROIT The SWAT team member whose gun, authorities say, killed 7-year-old Aiyana Jones Sunday during a raid at her home has been identified, and details about his police record have been released. Weekley had been facing a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison for the manslaughter charge. A Detroit police officer accused of manslaughter in the death of a 7-year-old girl will go on trial this week, as national attention remains focused on the militarization of U.S. law enforcement. Before Weekley's trial, potential jurors were asked questions related to the Ferguson shooting and if they had seen reports that might influence their decision in the case. Mertilla Jones, who. A judge has dropped the felony charge leveled against Joseph Weekley, the Detroit police officer who in 2010 shot 7-year-old Aiyana Stanley-Jones to death. Weekley says the MP5 only weighs six pounds and has almost no recoil, which is why he didn't initially know it had fired. By Copyright 2023 Police1. Loud voices could be heard in the jury room in Wayne County, Michigan a few hours before jurors threw in the towel in the case of Joseph Weekley on Tuesday and were dismissed. He says he accidentally fired his gun during a struggle with Aiyana's grandmother. Belinda Robinson for MailOnline. All rights reserved. He claims he accidentally pulled the trigger when Aiyanas grandmother, Mertilla Jones, grabbed his gun. 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Defendant Joseph Weekely, right, and A&E producer Allison Howard, who was at the raid, sit in. Joseph Weekley testifying at first trial in June, 2013. He also could have been cleared of all charges. "Innocent people do not run from the police. They sent three notes, the last one indicating they still couldn't reach a unanimous verdict on the third day of deliberations, despite encouragement from Judge Cynthia Gray Hathaway. , updated Sleeping 7-year-old girl shot in head during no-knock police raid on wrong home Photo by Thomas Alex Graves. They found Owens upstairs and arrested him. However, for his family, the outcome of Greenhouse's future trial and the fact that Stafford just got 40 years, are the only things that can provide even a semblance of comfort. The girl's father, Charles Jones, was convicted of second-degree murder for providing the gun used to kill Blake. Police staged a so-called safety briefing shortly before the raid; undoubtedly focusing on their own safety rather than the safety of unknown innocents behind the doors they were about to kick in. He also helped organize a recent event called Run With the Cops, Not From Them. Who Is DPD Officer Joseph Weekley? When expanded it provides a list of search options that will switch the search inputs to match the current selection. Westbrook and his wife sued Weekley and other members of the SRT for assault, false imprisonment and gross negligence, alleging that officers came into the home without warning, shot and killed the family's two dogs for no reason and pointed guns at a child and infant, according to the complaint. If convicted, Weekley could face up to 15 years behind bars. His attorney, Leon Weiss, calls the verdict "contradictory and compromised," pointing out that it found Jones not guilty of having a gun and yet suggested that he was guilty of second-degree murder for giving Owens a gun. Owens was suspected of having killed a teenager a few days earlier, a charge for which he would eventually be convicted. AP Photo by Carlos Osorio. During the last vote, the panel was split 7 to 5, with seven voting not guilty and five saying Weekley was guilty of the charge. and Associated Press. At the beginning of the case, jurors were asked to decide the officer's fate. If you need help with the Public File, call (313) 222-0566. After prosecutors objected, the judge suspended her decision and ordered a recess until late morning. Moments ago, one of the cops who killed 6-year-old Jeremy Mardis while on duty, was sentenced to an unprecedented 40 years in prison. Joseph Weekley charged with involuntary manslaughter in death of Aiyana Jones after he was 'grossly negligent' with handling gun during a raid Claims pulled gun trigger accidentally during. After he was shot, Few lost consciousness and didn't know his son died until he woke up in a hospital six days later the day of Jeremy's funeral. If convicted, he faces a maximum 15-year sentence for the manslaughter charge. Armed with an MP5 submachine gun and behind a shield, Weekley had been tasked with being first into the home in search of murder suspect, Chauncey Owens. Click here to take a moment and familiarize yourself with our Community Guidelines. The police officer responsible for the shooting, Joseph "Brain" Weekley, is a member of Detroit's SWAT team and was a frequent subject on A&E, whose film crews were also filming the investigation for the documentary TV series The First 48. The girl's father, Charles Jones, was convicted of second-degree murder for providing the gun used to kill Blake. The jury composed of nine men and four women was seated Thursday in Wayne County Circuit Court and is expected to hear opening statements Monday morning in the trial of Joseph Weekley. Weekley told jurors that he accidentally pulled the trigger during a struggle with the girl's grandmother, but Mertilla Jones denied interfering with the gun. The law is a gray area at best. Joseph Weekley shot Aiyana Stanley-Jones in 2010 Officer charged with involuntary manslaughter. Fishman was referring to the prosecution, not the defense. He said Tuesday plans to protest the return of Weekley are in the works but not finalized. Last year the city settled with Aiyana's family for $8.25 million. It was about 9:30 AM. According to the Detroit Free Press, prosecutors allege that Owens told Je'Rean: "Stay right here. But race, the jurors said, never played a role in deliberations, despite the fact that Weekley is white, and Aiyana was black. Armed with MP5 submachine guns, adrenaline, and an unhealthy fear for officer safety, the raiders shuffled past the toys that littered the front yard and ignored the two distinct street address signs hanging on either side of the shared porch of the multi-unit building; 4056 was on the left, 4054 was on the right. The shield seemed unnecessary, Weekley testified. Dominika Stanley, left, the mother of 7-year-old Aiyana Stanley-Jones, sits next to Aiyana's father Charles Jones in attorney Geoffrey Fieger's office in Southfield, Michigan, Tuesday, May 18, 2010. Shooting: Detroit Police Officer Joseph Weekley testifies during his first trial in Wayne County Circuit Court in Detroit, Michigan, his second trial was declared a mistrial on Friday Judge. The Wayne County Prosecutor's Office alleged that Weekley's negligence led to Aiyana's death. "This was essentially a military assault on a private dwelling," Ron Scott, spokesman for the Detroit Coalition Against Police Brutality, told the Associated Press last year about the raid on the Stanley-Jones home. Feast day: Mar 19 Sally LaBorde, a passenger in the van Dixon was driving, also testified, saying she could clearly see Few pointing to Jeremy in the car, and the implication was unmistakable that he wanted Dixon to take care of his son, according to the Advocate. Assistant Police Chief Ralph Godbee said Weekley was investigated after he was involved in a barricaded gunman shooting last summer. Detroit Corporation Counsel Lawrence Garcia announced the settlement with the family of Aiyana Stanley-Jones four days before a civil trial was to begin. The city of Detroit has reached an $8.25 million settlement with the family of Stanley-Jones, who was accidentally killed by Weekley during a 2010 raid. The prosecution will file an emergency appeal with the Court of Appeals, according to the Detroit News. They kept firing.". Joseph Weekley, a member of an elite police unit, was the first officer through the door of her home during a chaotic search for a murder suspect. The Detroit police officer who fatally shot a sleeping 7-year-old girl will not be retried, officials said Wednesday. Daily Mail Reporter DETROIT, MI -- It's been five years since Detroit Police Officer Joseph Weekley led a SWAT team in search of a murder suspect and fatally shot 7-year-old Aiyana Stanley-Jones. Officer on trial: Joseph Weekley testifies in his own defense Jose had just turned in, having worked 12 hours straight at a local mine, when his home was invaded. The event raised funds for kids with cancer. 0:22 After two hung juries, the Detroit police officer charged in the death of 7-year-old Aiyana Stanley-Jones will not be tried again. "The only evidence that points to any kind of knowingly creating a danger or intending to cause injury, the only testimony is that of Mertilla Jones, which is by its nature and by comparison to the other testimony, including the medical examiner, is completely and totally unbelievable," Fishman told the judge on Friday. In November 2015,Few's fiance came forward about her relationship to Greenhouse. As the Free Thought Project reported last week,Officer Derrick Stafford wasfound guilty of manslaughter and attempted manslaughter in the horrific fatal shooting of the six-year-old with autism on November 3, 2015. So why would they come in there like that? The girl was shot in the head while she slept on a couch. (John T. Greilick/Detroit News via AP, File) He said Detroit police are trained to push away anyone who tries to grab an officers gun or to move the weapon in a J shape to keep control of it. Owned and operated by the Hernandez family UglyJudge.com UGLYJUDGE Copyright 2006-2023 All Rights Reserved Notice: "We, are not attorneys. In February, Owens was found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). Lexipol. They've criticized the nighttime raid and the possible use of excessive force, particularly the use of a flash-bang grenade. Part of HuffPost Black Voices. The Michigan State Police are investigating the shooting. She said she'd initially been asleep on the couch with Aiyana, but that she was on the floor when Weekley shot his weapon, not close enough to touch the gun. Greenhouse, whose defense team has been pulling insane tactics out of the woodwork up to and including demanding to know if any prosecution witnesses underwent hypnosis or any "truth-determining examinations," such as polygraph tests or sodium pentothal. One of the most important questions that jurors needed to answer was whether the discharge of the weapon was a result of the defendant's carelessness, recklessness or negligence. Part of HuffPost Crime. The Wayne County prosecutor's office said in a statement that on Friday Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Cynthia Gray Hathaway dismissed the involuntary manslaughter charge, granting a motion submitted by Weekley's attorney, Steve Fishman. Despite our concerns about lawyers in general, We suggest that anyone with legal questions consult an attorney for an answer, particularly after reading anything on this website. The prosecution and defense have offered contradictory depictions of the events leading up to Stanley-Jones' death. 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