Southfield police deny excessive force claims in April arrest of mentally-ill man
SOUTHFIELD, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) - Southfield police are pushing back against claims its officers used excessive force when they arrested Clint Willis in April.
Willis' family is preparing to sue the police department because Willis is now paralyzed after being in police custody.
Police held a press conference on Thursday to show the video of the incident in question and give their side of what happened.
The video showed a female officer approaching Willis. The video then shows he later attacked the officer, punching her and causing a laceration above her right eye.
Willis has been charged with assaulting a police officer, police said.
Another officer then tackled Willis, placing him in handcuffs before taking him into the back of a patrol car.
Police also released another video of when Willis arrived at the jail. It showed a struggle between him and officers who were attempting to put him in a holding cell. They tried multiple times.
When they were finally able to get him inside, the surveillance appears to show Willis run into a wall. Officers claims that's when he got injured.
"I'm very satisfied with the level of force we used," said Police Chief Elvin Barren
Southfield police say the incident began when officers received a 911 call on April 5 of a man who allegedly assaulted his mother.
Dispatch received multiple 911 calls, including from a possible neighbor who said the man was suffering from a mental illness. Southfield police say officers were unware of his mental illness.
Willis' family confirms he suffers from mental illness and called 911 to get him help.
The family believes police mishandled the call, adding Willis should have never been taken to a holding cell, but rather a mental health facility.
Michael Fortner, Willis' attorney, also confirms he is now paralyzed as a result of the incident. He believes it happened during the altercation with the jail guards and not when he hit the wall.
Fortner says the family is preparing to sue the police department.
A press conference is planned with Willis' family on Sunday to respond to Southfield PD's account of what happened.
Watch the dashcam video below:
