FLINT, MI (WZZM) - A traffic stop turned deadly Wednesday night in Flint Township. It happened on Flushing Road near Eldorado Drive, around 6 p.m. Now, the investigation into what happened is underway. This is the third incident in about a month involving police that led to the death of a civilian in Genesee County. When I looked, I saw white Impala. He was just starting to take off, the police stepped in front of him and shot him twice, said Matthew Bell. Bell was at a car wash on Flushing Road when police pulled over the white Impala. They made everyone get out the car to search the car, he said. Police called in back up and got four people, including at least one child, out of the Impala. Thats when the situation escalated. One of the occupants got inside the drivers seat and took off. At that time, an officer was threatened and shots were fired, said Lt. Jim Baldwin, of the Flint Township Police. Those shots fired by the back up officer hit and killed the driver trying to get away. Flint Township Police maintain that the officer felt threatened by that drivers actions. We are all told in drivers training that a vehicle can be used as a weapon. Its got a whole lot more mass than a speeding bullet does, Baldwin said. In light of this incident and the other civilian deaths, City Council member Sheldon Neeley says tensions are high between residents and the police. Any shooting any time in any city is going to draw concern from any elected official, and when we have multiple shootings in a short period of time, of course it brings attention, unfair attention, to one local community, he said. We are anxiously waiting to see what happened and to see if this shooting was justified or not. prestigesecurityllc
Posted on: Fri, 18 Jul 2014 12:22:05 +0000