DETROIT (WXYZ) — "We have got justice for him," said Dezanique Grimes, the oldest sister of Damon Grimes, the 15-year-old who was tased by Michigan State Police Trooper Mark Bessner, which caused the teen to crash his ATV into a parked pickup truck.
On August 26, 2017, Grimes died on the street near his home on Detroit's east side. And after one hung jury ended in a mistrial, another jury would find the now ex-trooper guilty of involuntary manslaughter.
The recommended guidelines for sentencing Bessner were 19 to 38 months in a Michigan prison.
However, Judge Margaret Van Houten went above the recommendation, telling Bessner that Damon was just a teenager and he was a grown man who was not only trained in the use of a taser but also warned by his superiors to be careful with it.
Van Houten also made it clear that she did not believe Bessner's claim that he deployed his taser because he thought the teen he was chasing on an ATV was armed.
"It is the few officers like you who have caused the distrust of police officers that plagues our community in Detroit, the state of Michigan, and throughout the country," said Judge Van Houten before sentencing Bessner to 5 to 15 years in prison.
"I think he didn't think that he was going to get in trouble," said Dezanique Grimes. "I think he thought he was going to get away with this."
Before exiting the courtroom, Mark Bessner's wife appeared visibly angry, glaring in silence at the judge.
Van Houten has also ordered Bessner to reimburse the Grimes family $8,000 for the teen's funeral costs.
