MADISON HEIGHTS, Mich. – A man is suing the Madison Heights Police Department and multiple officers one year after they were called to his home over a neighbor dispute and got into an altercation.
The police department on Tuesday received a complaint on behalf of Madison Heights resident Larry White, 74, who is accusing officers of using excessive force during an incident on July 23, 2022. In the federal lawsuit, White’s attorneys claim four police officers violated White’s Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment rights when they entered his home and tased him, and maliciously prosecuted him, among other things.
In a press release distributed Tuesday, Aug. 15, White’s attorneys provided police body cam footage that captured the incident. Based on the video, police were called to White’s Madison Heights home by neighbors who claimed White was behaving inappropriately with their children, and alleged that White threatened to use his gun.
The neighbor could be heard telling police that his children, ages 3 and 4, were encouraged by White to enter White’s home for some ice cream. Visibly upset, the children’s father claimed that White frequently interacts with the young children, and often offers them treats, despite the parents’ alleged requests for White to stop.
The parents claimed that on July 23, 2022, the children were playing in the front yard of their home when White offered them ice cream. A woman described as the children’s aunt reportedly told the parents that the kids were entering White’s home, and the mother then went next door to collect the kids.
After the mother had hold of the kids, the father said he verbally fought with the 74-year-old man from outside the home, and said he didn’t want his children at White’s house. The neighbor said White had a handgun on him, which he described as a “Glock,” and that White raised it and threatened to use it against him.
After police spoke with the neighbor, the officers walked next door to confront White. The footage showed officers immediately asking White if he had the gun, to which White said “yes,” and told White to step outside. White could be heard telling the officers he would not come outside, asking if they had a warrant, and telling the officers to calm down. An officer could be heard saying, “We need to talk with you, this is an emergency situation. Step out of the house.”
Officers warned White they would “put their hands” on him if he didn’t come out, and at least two officers could be seen pulling on White’s arms in an attempt to bring him out. The officers ended up taking White down inside the house and pinning him down on the floor. Four officers were ultimately involved.
The footage shows officers trying to restrain White in handcuffs, with one officer tasing the man multiple times. White could be heard asking the officers to stop, and telling them that he has a heart condition. A handgun could be seen resting in a holster on White’s belt.
White’s attorneys say the officers falsely accused the man of “‘going for his gun’ both at the incident and in the incident report,” the complaint reads. The angle of body cam footage provided makes it difficult to see if the man ever reached for his gun during the scuffle. The complaint also alleges that officers falsely accused White of refusing to cooperate and disobeying police commands.
After White was in handcuffs, body cam footage captured the conversation between officers and the man. He told officers that the children asked him for ice cream, and he said, “sure, they’re kids.” White also could be heard telling officers that he didn’t pull his gun on his neighbor, and didn’t reach for his gun when approached by police.
Immediately following the incident, body camera footage captured a conversation between two officers regarding White and his gun.
- Officer 1: “Why didn’t he just come out of the house?”
- Officer 2: “I have no idea.”
- Officer 1: “... I didn’t see, was he reaching back for the gun?”
- Officer 2: “[Officers’ names] were up front, I’m guessing that’s what happened. I was walking up, ‘cause I was talking to [the neighbor]. As he was saying he’s not coming out, we were grabbing at his arms. So, I think that’s what happened.”
- Officer 1: “Well, as far as I’m concerned, we were investigating a possible kidnapping, a possible [felonious assault]. So, we had every right to be there.”
- Officer 2: “I know they said, I heard, ‘keep your hand away from it,’ so I’m guessing that’s what happened. I know, when we had him on the ground, he was trying to reach for it.”
Following the incident, White was charged with assault with a dangerous weapon, and obstructing a police officer/resisting arrest. The charges against him were reportedly dropped in March when an Oakland County Circuit Court judge decided that “’the police officers’ physical entry into the home violated Larry White’s right to be free form unreasonable searches and seizures and violates the 4th Amendment,’” the complaint reads.
Now, White is seeking monetary relief, specifically for actual damages, allegedly including “those arising from loss of past and future income and benefits, humiliation, mental anguish, loss of reputation, emotional distress and other harm,” the complaint reads. White is also seeking to hold the entire police department responsible for allegedly failing to “properly train, authorize, encourage or direct” the four police officers involved in the incident.
When asked on Tuesday to comment, the chief of the Madison Heights Police Department said they had no comment yet, since they had just received the complaint. You can read the complaint in full below.