Family of mentally-ill man killed by Detroit police will sue
(CBS DETROIT) --The family of a mentally-ill man who was killed by Detroit police plans to file a lawsuit against the department and the five officers who shot at him.
The officers fired a total of 38 rounds early Sunday morning after they say Porter Burks charged at them with a knife.
The family's attorney, Geoffrey Fieger, says police knew Burks was experiencing a mental health crisis and called it an "execution" -- by "firing squad."
Burks' family hopes this lawsuit will bring change.
"The police think that they can kill people like Porter with impunity and get away with it," Fieger said during a news conference Thursday.
Fieger was critical of the five Detroit police officers for shooting the 20-year-old man, who Fieger says was experiencing a psychotic break from schizophrenia.
"Sometimes they don't understand right from wrong. The paranoid delusions, the voices, the hallucinations overwhelm them," Fieger said.
Detroit Police Chief James White defended his officers' actions during his press conference Tuesday. He told reporters the officers felt threatened as Burks charged at them with a knife.
"But if Porter Burks was an animal, a vicious animal, a tiger, a lion, you know how to shoot him with a tranquilizing gun -- why would you shoot him with 38 bullets? Why would you treat him worse than a wild animal?
Burks' family believes officers handcuffed him after opening fire and dumped him at the hospital.
"The doctors had no idea what happened to Porter. They didn't know who had shot him," Fieger said.
In a statement to the press Thursday, Detroit Police refuted those allegations:
"We normally do not comment on statements made by attorneys in litigation with the city, but some comments made by Mr. Fieger today cannot go uncorrected. The body cam videos of the incident show the efforts our officers made to de-escalate the situation with Mr. Burks. DPD is proud of the many times we have achieved safe outcomes with armed and mentally ill individuals by relying on trained interaction and a great deal of patience. The officers hoped to achieve the same outcome with Mr. Burks, until he charged at an officer with a knife. The officers had only 5 seconds to stop the threat. Mr. Fieger's claim that officers dumped Mr. Burks at the hospital are just plain false. Officers transported Mr. Burks immediately to Sinai-Grace Hospital. One officer performed chest compressions on Mr. Burks in the back of the police car the entire way to the hospital in an attempt to keep him alive. At the hospital, officers remained with Mr. Burks and remained engaged with the medical staff until a doctor, sadly, pronounced him dead. This is a tragedy felt by everyone in the community and by every member of the Detroit Police Department. Unfortunately, Detroit Police officers are having to confront a growing number of cases of armed individuals suffering from mental illness in our community. The department is investigating every aspect of this tragic incident to do everything possible to avoid the loss of life in these situations in the future."
There are hundreds of thousands of other Porters out there who this shouldn't happen to ever," Fieger said.
So next week, Fieger will file a lawsuit claiming negligence by the police officers and violations against the state's Civil Rights Act and the State Constitution. He is also considering filing a federal Civil Right Complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice.
"For the thousands of Michigan residents who have children or loved ones in identical situations as Porter think 50 times before you call the police," Fieger warned.
Burks' family is now awaiting the results of an independent autopsy.
