Detroit Police Fail? Internal Affairs Looks Into Officers' Response To Reports Of Body
DETROIT (WWJ/AP) - The Detroit Police Department has launched an internal affairs investigation after it took police five trips to a scene to discover a dead man's body.
Police Chief James Craig said officers responded to four 911 calls about a body inside a Detroit home on Coventry Street — in the area of 8 Mile Road and John R, on the city's east side — without going inside.
"We know at this point in the investigation that it was an occupied dwelling, that the house was locked, and that the fifth call, I think was, that's when the door was forced open and the deceased was discovered," Craig said,
The Detroit News reported that it was different police crew that responded for the fifth time Tuesday and found the 61-year-old man dead in a bedroom. A police document noted officers had responded four times Monday and Tuesday to 911 calls.
Craig said he'll "take appropriate action" if it's determined that the officers' actions were neglectful.
In the meantime, he said, they're looking into the details.
"Certainly sometimes...we look for a nexus. I mean, if there's a blood trail, or somebody's very specific, or the person calling us we can have a conversation with to make a determination," Craig told reporters Friday. "But when someone calls and hangs up, sometimes that make indicate a prank call."
"If it is determined that a police officer failed their duty...yes, there is frustration with that, I agree. But we don't know. We do know that the person who called police was anonymous," he said.
Craig said police have not yet determined if this is a case of homicide.
The man's body was taken to the Wayne County Medical Examiner's Office to determine cause of death.
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