DETROIT – The Detroit police sergeant who was suspended for inaction during a the fatal shooting of Officer Rasheen McClain has retired due to post-traumatic stress disorder, his attorney announced Thursday.
Police Chief James Craig said Sgt. Ronald Kidd should have been at the scene where McClain and his partner, Officer Phillippe Batoum-Bisse, were shot. McClain was killed.
Kidd has been suspended after a review of his car cam and body cam found that he never made it to the scene. Instead, he stayed a block away and suggested to his partner they take cover.
On Friday, his attorney, Odey Meroueh, released a statement saying his client couldn’t have saved McClain.
Here are Meroueh’s full comments:
"First and foremost, Sgt. Kidd would like to send his thoughts and prayers and offer his condolences to Officer McClain’s family and the city of Detroit Police Department for the loss of their loved one and fellow brother in blue.
"While Sgt. Kidd mourns the loss of Officer McClain, nothing he could have done on that night could have prevented the tragedy that occurred. Unfortunately, Sgt. Kidd, on the night in question, suffered from an episode of post-traumatic stress disorder.
"This episode manifested from a culmination of 21 years serving the city of Detroit and its people, and before that, our country, as both in the United States Army and as a United States Marine.
“As a result of this diagnosis, Sgt. Kidd felt compelled today to retire from the city of Detroit Police Department. At this time, we’re requesting that the community and the police department come together in support of Sgt. Kidd. Thank you. No further questions.”