Editor’s note: Since our initial story, the wife of Lieutenant Scott Hall declined to appear at a February court hearing, leading a judge to dismiss the domestic violence charge against her husband. The prosecutor’s office tells 7 News Detroit it had no concerns over the credibility of the allegations made by Hall’s wife. Detroit police tell 7 News Detroit that Hall is still the subject of an internal investigation, where discipline could be levied. He remains demoted from the rank of captain.
A decorated Detroit police captain has been demoted following accusations of domestic violence by his wife, a fellow officer.
Capt. Scott Hall was suspended last week after being accused of strangling his wife after arriving home intoxicated.
Hall’s wife called 911 in Birmingham after she said her husband of 12 years arrived home late with bloodshot eyes and smelling of alcohol.
She said an argument ensued and that Hall “came up behind her” in their kitchen and, using his left arm, “wrapped it around her neck and had her in a chokehold.”
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She said “it was enough to make her feel like she was dying,” and that Hall let go after she reached back and scratched his face.
Birmingham police officers observed “redness on her neck” and “two scratch marks on her left arm.”
7 Action News does not name victims of assault without their permission.
“I mean this, this is (expletive) I see at work where people die in situations like this,” his wife — an officer for another agency — told police. “I cannot believe this is happening to me.”
Hall left his Birmingham home before police arrived. He was located and pulled over by Beverly Hills police not far away, driving his city-issued police car.
He declined to tell officers what transpired but denied anything physical took place. Hall was taken into custody that night.
While his wife told officers repeatedly that Hall smelled of alcohol and was pulled over by Beverly Hills police in his police vehicle, Hall was not breathalyzed.
Birmingham police told 7 Action News that’s because Beverly Hills cops pulled him over. Since their own officers never saw him behind the wheel, they didn’t give him a breathalyzer test.
Hall was charged with domestic violence by the Oakland County prosecutor.
Following his arrest, Detroit Police Department Chief James White suspended the captain and demoted him by a full rank.
“Those accusations are extremely serious and if any of that is true related to the assault, that’s unacceptable,” said Cmdr. Michael McGinnis, who heads DPD’s Professional Standards Unit.
"Police are held to a higher standard, and a command officer is even higher than that.”
Hall is currently suspended with pay.
“That’s an embarrassment to the city of Detroit, to the Detroit police department,” said Police Commissioner Ricardo Moore. “Something needs to be done about it.”
Moore is familiar with Hall. Back in August, the Detroit Board of Police Commissioners was asked to promote him from lieutenant to captain.
But Moore was concerned by Hall’s history of citizen complaints: he racked up 56 of them over a nearly 24-year career.
“Fifty-six complaints is a bad thing for a new police officer to say: ‘Well a captain can have 56 complaints. I can have 56 complaints, too.’"
Moore abstained from approving Hall's promotion. Eight other board members voted to approve it, with Commissioner Willie Burton voting against it.
Back in August, White acknowledged Hall’s history, but told commissioners that his last complaint came in 2017.
White said after meeting with Hall personally, he was convinced he’d grown from his mistakes and was a changed man.
“I proudly make this recommendation despite of who he was, I make this recommendation because of who he is,” White said back in August 2023.
“And I make this recommendation because I am confident he can save officers who are going down the wrong path.”
Calls and an emails to Hall’s attorney were not returned.
Contact 7 Investigator Ross Jones at ross.jones@wxyz.com or at 248-827-9466.