KENTWOOD, Mich. — On Monday U.S. District Court Judge Hala Jarbou ruled that former Michigan State Police (MSP) Sergeant and Detective Brian Keely's case will go to federal court.
Keely was charged with second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter in the death of Samuel Sterling in May. He pleaded not guilty at his arraignment in June. Keely was granted a $250,000 personal recognizance bond, meaning he could be released from custody without first posting bond or making a deposit.
Michigan State Police previously released bodycam footage showing Sterling running along the side of a Burger King back in April. The video then shows Keely striking Sterling with his patrol vehicle, pinning Sterling against the brick wall. Sterling later died from his injuries.
Even though Keely was employed by MSP, he was a part of a regional task force created by the United States Marshal Services assigned to arrest Sterling on multiple felony warrants. Because of this, Keely was working as a federal officer, which is why he and his lawyers wanted the case moved to a federal court.
Under the federal officer removal statute (28 U.S.C. § 1455), the court granted their request.
District Court Judge Amanda Sterkenburg made the decision for the case to go to trial last week. Judge Sterkenburg found probable cause to send Keely to trial on both the second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter charges.
Judge Sterkenburg stated in her findings that there was no dispute that Keely's vehicle hit Sterling and that the collision caused injuries resulting in his death. But, she did note that "conflicting evidence" should be reviewed by a jury at trial.
"As count one, there is conflicting evidence upon the issue of whether the defendant had the requisite mindset to sustain a charge of second degree murder, specifically, did he act with malice," Judge Sterkenburg said in her findings. "There are more questions in my mind as to conflicting evidence in count one than in count two, involuntary manslaughter, many elements are the same, and I've previously stated my findings. However, involuntary manslaughter contains the element of gross negligence. I believe, by reason of his training and experience, that the defendant was aware that the pursuit of a fleeing felon required, at minimum, the exercise of ordinary care and diligence, and that he had the ability to avert the harm, defendant could have slowed or braked much earlier than he chose to."
At the end of Judge Jarbou's order to send the case to federal court, there is an order that both parties must file appearances in the criminal action within seven days of Monday's decision.
Ven Johnson, who is representing the Sterling family, issued the following statement after Monday's ruling:
“Today, U.S. District Court Judge Jarbou ruled that since Brian Keely was on a federal task force, even though he was still employed by Michigan State Police, the removal of the criminal case from Michigan State Court to Federal Court is proper. On behalf of the Sterling family, we, of course, will continue to support the criminal prosecution of Keely for killing an unarmed Samuel Sterling, irrespective of the forum in which it takes place.
Regarding any procedural issues on how this works, we defer to the criminal law experts at the Michigan Attorney General’s office, who have done an excellent job prosecuting Keely for his wrongdoing." – Attorney Ven Johnson, Ven Johnson Law