Expert: Chase that killed Samuel Sterling a ‘criminal matter’

GRAND RAPIDS — Video showing the police chase that ended with the death of Samuel Sterling outside a Kentwood Burger King shows a clear violation of policy, according to two police experts.

Roy G. Taylor and Melvin L. Tucker, both former long-time police chiefs and police training consultants, watched the video separately at Target 8’s request.

“It’s not a use of proper police procedure,” Taylor said. “We are not training officers to chase people in cars because something tragic like this could happen.”

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The state has not released the name of the state police detective sergeant behind the wheel of the SUV, but his attorney, Marc Curtis, sent Target 8 a statement on Monday.

“We would like to express to the family and community that we know you are grieving the death of Mr. Sterling. The Trooper involved is heartbroken at the loss of Mr. Sterling’s life and wants the family to know that he had no intention of purposely harming Mr. Sterling.”

He wrote the detective sergeant is cooperating with the investigation.

“At this time we ask for everyone’s patience and allow the Michigan State Police and the Attorney General’s Office to conduct a thorough investigation and review of this matter.”

The video of the crash, from inside the Burger King and provided by family, is difficult to watch, showing the moment on April 17 that the state police sergeant struck Sterling from behind outside the restaurant with an unmarked SUV.

That followed a short chase after state police had spotted Sterling, who was wanted on warrants, near a gas station in Kentwood. Sterling, 25, was a father of two who was pursuing a career as a rapper.

“He’s closing on the person,” Taylor said. “He’s moving quickly in a 4,000-pound SUV and we see it jump the curb, come to an abrupt halt, whether that was him hitting the brakes hard or crushing the person in between the vehicle and the building, I don’t know.”

“I would not opine as to whether or not the (sergeant’s) actions were intentional or not,” Tucker wrote in an email. ” Only he knows that. I would, however, opine that Sterling was not posing a threat of serious bodily harm or death to anyone at the time of the incident, so there was not an immediate need for his apprehension and the use of a vehicle to chase down a fleeing suspect on foot was not a reasonable action. Even a trip and fall by Sterling would have had serious consequences, and the driver of the vehicle could not respond quick enough to prevent striking him.”

Taylor said he believes the pursuit also violated the law and should lead to criminal charges.

“No matter what the trooper said he was doing and why his vehicle jumped up over the curb onto the sidewalk and struck the suspect, it’s still going to be a criminal matter. It’s an involuntary homicide at the very least.”

At the most, he said, it was “murder.”

Records show Sterling had absconded from probation in June 2022 after a conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm and carrying a concealed weapon.

The weapons charge came after police said they found a gun in his unoccupied car.

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He violated probation, records show, by possessing marijuana and leaving the state.

“It was a situaton where he’s fleeing from a warrant, not from a bank robbery or from a murder, something that would warrant using deadly force in the pursuit of the person,” Taylor said.

Both experts also criticized the state police for conducting the investigation. The crash involved troopers from the Sixth District, which covers West Michigan, including Grand Rapids. The Fifth District, to the south, is investigating.

The detective sergeant who was driving the unmarked car has been placed on unpaid suspension pending the outcome.

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“You don’t investigate yourself, even if it’s from another district,” Taylor said. “They still probably have common relationships and bonds, maybe they went to training together.”

Sterling’s family, who is working with civil rights attorney Ben Crump, has demanded state police release body and dash cam video.

“I don’t think this was necessarily an accident,” Taylor said. “I don’t think it was an intentional homicide; I think it was split-second poor judgment that resulted in the death of a person that was fleeing from the police.”

His death certificate indicated he had “multiple blunt force injuries” and died about five hours after the crash. The manner of death was listed as “accident.”

Kent County Chief Medical Examiner Dr. David Start, who conducted the autopsy, said he watched video of the death and spoke to investigators before reaching his conclusion. However, he said, deeming it accidental would not preclude a prosecutor from filing criminal charges.

The U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Mark Totten, the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and the FBI Field Office Detroit released a joint statement on the case, saying they were “monitoring the ongoing state investigation into the circumstances that led to the tragic death of Samuel Sterling.”

“We will continue to coordinate with our state and local law enforcement partners,” the statement continued. “If in the course of the state investigation, evidence reveals a potential violation of federal criminal statutes, we will take appropriate action.”

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