Two Dearborn police officers involved in separate deadly shootings won't face charges for either shooting, Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy announced Wednesday.
According to Wayne County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Maria Miller, Dearborn officers acted in lawful self-defense in the shooting death of Kevin Matthews and Janet Wilson.
Kevin Matthews case
Matthews was shot and killed on Dec. 23, 2015 after an officer saw him walking down the street. The officer knew he was involved in a fight and theft at a gas station earlier in the day.
He took off when approached by an officer, and the officer following him yelling, "Stop - Police." Matthews climbed over a fence where the shooting took place.
Matthews and the officer were engaged in a struggle that started in the grass and continued into the rear of the house. It ended when Matthews was standing over the officer and pulled the ammunition magazine from his belt. While the officer was on his back, he fired nine shots, killing Matthews.
"The officer certainly had a legitimate fear that Mr. Matthews would gain control of his weapon, and use it to harm him and make good his escape," Worthy wrote in a detailed description.
No charges filed in deadly shooting of Kevin Matthews by WXYZ-TV Channel 7 Detroit on Scribd
Janet Wilson case
Wilson was shot and killed in the parking lot of Fairlane Mall on Jan. 27, 2016. It started when she was caught on video surveillance acting disorderly inside a store at Fairlane Mall and then toward a security officer.
After she left the mall, she started chasing mall security around. That's when Dearborn police were called, who told mall security to stay away from her for her own safety.
Wilson then allegedly got inside her car and drove toward the security officer's vehicle, then toward another vehicle.
When officers arrived, they were told she was trying to hit security officers. When she stopped at a light, three Dearborn police officers approached her car and told her to turn it off. One officer repeatedly pounded on her window, telling her to turn off the car. When traffic cleared, Wilson drove toward the second officer near the front of the car.
He pulled out his gun and ordered her to stop, but she kept going. That's when the officer fired three shots through the front window and one shot through the passenger window, hitting Wilson.
"Police, security officers and civilian eyewitness accounts when taken as a whole support the justification of the shooting under the law of self defense," Worthy wrote.
Read the detailed description from Worthy below.
No charges issued in shooting of Janet Wilson by WXYZ-TV Channel 7 Detroit on Scribd
