SOUTHFIELD, Mich. – Southfield’s police chief is refuting claims of police brutality. It comes as posts started going viral on social media.
Clint Willis, 27, is now paralyzed from the neck down after an arrest in Southfield.
Southfield police Chief Elvin Barren said that the injury was not from an officer but something Willis did to himself.
A $20 million lawsuit on Willis’ behalf has been filed, and his family believes he should not have been able to harm himself.
Thursday (May 11), Barren released footage from multiple officers’ body cameras from around 8 a.m. April 5. He said the call initially came in as a domestic violence call.
“The callers from the family suggested that the suspect named Mr. Clint Willis had assaulted his elderly mother rendering her unconscious,” said Barren. “Also, a second call came in that the suspect had also damaged a vehicle that was driving in that area.”
While the family did not want to go on camera, they told Local 4 they called the police to get Willis help during a mental health crisis.
During an altercation with arresting officers, Willis struck an officer in the head near her eye, causing her to bleed. Barren said that the officer was doing well and still working.
Willis was then pinned down in cuffs as he mumbled to himself. He’s then taken to the jail inside Southfield Police Department.
“Jail video is not able to be FOIA, so me wanting to be very transparent as I always am, I give you all the information,” Barren said. “Again, I included this in this press briefing so you know exactly what happened.”
In the jail surveillance video, you see Willis, without cuffs talking with contracted jail staff from Allied Universal.
They try to get him into a holding cell, but when he doesn’t want to go, that’s when things take a turn. After two attempts, three staff members got him into the cell.
“Mr. Willis became agitated,” Barren said. “You’ll see in the video he goes to the rear of the cell and then runs headfirst into the glass wall striking his head.”
Willis’ attorneys said he had a broken neck and needed emergency surgery. He’s now paralyzed from the neck down and in a rehabilitation facility.
Barren said he stands with his officers’ and Allied Universal’s actions.
“I think they conducted themselves of the best they could under the circumstances,” Barren said. “There’s just an unfortunate incident where Mr. Willis inflicted a self-injury on himself, and we do hope that he recovers from his injuries. But again, I wanted the family to have the information because they were functioning off what they were told and functioning on some assumptions.”
Willis’ attorneys plan to hold a press conference outside of Southfield Police Department Sunday, (May 13) at 4 p.m.
He was charged with assaulting a police officer, domestic assault, and malicious destruction of property.
