DETROIT – At least 32 Detroit police officers have been taken off the street after working without active law enforcement licenses, officials said.
The Michigan Commission on Law Enforcement Standards (MCOLES) said in a release that it is working with the police department to resolve this issue.
The unlicensed officers were hired between November 2019 and August 2024.
An initial investigation revealed that the police department didn’t request reactivation for the licenses when these officers were hired or rehired.
“If an officer separates employment for any reason, their license is rendered inactive by operation of law,” according to the MCOLES release. “An agency that wants to reactivate an inactive license is responsible to submit a request to the Commission. The request for reactivation must include an executed oath of office and an attestation by the agency that the individual meets the Commission’s licensing standards.”
In addition, police agencies must confirm their rosters to MCOLES every January, and notify the commission within three business days when an officer is hired, separated or their law enforcement authority has been removed.
If the licenses are not reactivated, officers are prohibited from exercising law enforcement authority.
The commission is working with the Detroit Police Department to audit all of the affected officers and ensure they are all licensed.
Detroit police responded to the issue and said all officers underwent proper training, and that they weren’t aware of this issue.
“Internal auditing and correspondence with MCOLES has revealed that the licensure status of approximately 30 officers is reflected as either “lapsed” or “inactive.” While this matter is under investigation, this appears to be the result of a failure to submit required paperwork to the State of Michigan. The DPD can confirm that all officers have undergone appropriate training and that Human Resources is working toward updating each member’s respective file.
At this time, there is no indication that any member of this group was aware of this issue, nor is this oversight indicative of the quality of work each member performs on a day-to-day basis. Each member of this group will be temporarily assigned to administrative duties to give Human Resources time to address this issue. The Department has notified the prosecutor’s office of this issue."
Detroit Police Department Media Relations
All affected officers have been temporarily placed on administrative duties.
Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy has been notified of this licensing issue.
The Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office is launching an investigation, requesting the names of the officers.
“We trust our institutions to make sure that you have qualified people, especially when you’re doing a job like a police officer. You know that’s a job that requires the use of guns. It requires specific training. It requires use of judgment and to make life and death decisions for the community,” Attorney Jon Marko said.
Marko said it could have an impact on prosecuted cases.
“This is going to create a huge issue for the city of Detroit, for the court system, and for anybody who’s had interactions or has been involved with investigations by these unlicensed officers who shouldn’t have been doing what they were doing,” Marko said.
Detroit Board of Police Commissioners chair Darryl Woods also has concerns.
“I am very, very hopeful that this is not a catastrophic situation where cases have to be reversed,” Woods said.
