DETROIT – A now viral video showing a Detroit police officer punching a man during a suspect pursuit at a home on the city’s west side has sparked conversations online about when police can enter and search a home.
The incident happened just after midnight Thursday (April 2) in the 16900 block of Wormer Street, police said.
Officers initially stopped a young man they believed was violating Detroit’s curfew for minors, then realized he was carrying a gun, according to police.
The man ran from officers and into a nearby home, police said.
Video circulating on social media shows officers at the door trying to enter the house. The video shows yelling between officers and family members escalating into an altercation as officers attempted to move past them.
In the video, officers restrain a man, and one officer appears to punch him repeatedly before other officers intervene.
Retired Assistant Detroit Police Chief Steve Dolunt said officers can enter a home without a warrant in limited circumstances, including “hot pursuit,” when officers are chasing someone they believe is armed or has committed a violent felony.
“If there’s hot pursuit, you’re chasing someone who you know is armed or has committed a violent felony, not a misdemeanor, a felony, you can hot pursuit enter a dwelling because someone’s life could be in danger,” Dolunt said.
Dolunt said a second exception is “exigent circumstances,” which he described as emergency situations in which someone is in immediate danger.
“Someone’s either in grave danger, or someone’s got a gun, it could be anything that could be considered a violent felony, or someone’s life is in danger, or they’re going to be the victim of a violent assault,” he said.
Detroit police have said the man seen being restrained in the video could face charges of obstructing an officer.
Dolunt said attempts to stop officers from entering a home during a hot pursuit can be considered obstruction.
“Why are you obstructing me? What else is going on in here?” he said, adding that officers may also question whether there are weapons or contraband inside.
Dolunt said officers are trained to de-escalate their use of force once a person stops resisting.
“The use of force goes up as the person raises the level; once the person calms down, you have to bring it down,” Dolunt said.
In an online comment, the Detroit Police Department said it is conducting an internal investigation into the officer’s actions and has placed one officer on administrative duty while the review continues.
Police said the young man who fled was arrested and had a handgun.
He could face charges, including carrying a concealed weapon. Police said warrant requests have been submitted to the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office, which will decide whether charges will be filed.