KENT COUNTY, Mich. — Editor's note: the video in the player above may be disturbing to some viewers. Discretion is advised.
Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker has announced his charging decision in the death of a teen who was hit by a Kent County Sheriff deputy patrol car.
Riley Doggett, 17, died on May 9, weeks after he was hit by a sheriff patrol car during a chase.
Becker announced Tuesday he will be charging the juvenile driver of the car Doggett was riding in.
The juvenile will be charged with fleeing and eluding in the first degree causing death and continuing a criminal enterprise. Both are felony charges.
Becker will be asking the court to charge them as an adult.
"Everybody in the world makes mistakes, some bigger than others. But Riley did not deserve to die for any mistake he may or may not have made that day," said Doggett's mother, Becky Wilbert.
Just before 7 p.m. on April 8, deputies said Doggett was an occupant in what they believe was a stolen vehicle connected to several crimes in Kent County. When police in Holland first attempted to pull the white Land Rover over, they drove away.
Police chased the car all the way to the county line before Kent County deputies spotted it.
They said the car again did not stop and a brief chase began. Dashcam video released by Becker at the press conference shows the Range Rover hitting other cars to get away from police.
The Range Rover then pulled off into a parking lot. Officials said Doggett and one other person then got out of the car and attempted to run while the vehicle was still in motion.
Video shows Deputy Josiah McMains jump his police cruiser over a curb and sideswipe Doggett while he was running away. Becker said Doggett's left calf got caught in the wheel causing him to fall and slam his head into the ground. Becker says this was his cause of death.
Doggett was holding a black object while running, which can be spotted in the dashcam footage. Becker said the McMains thought it was a gun, and Doggett was running to the nearby residential area, which is why he hit him. It was a cellphone.
Doggett's family attorney, Ven Johnson, says when prosecutor Becker was discussing the tire marks found on Riley's body, that shows that the deputy intentionally hit him.
"He then talked about how the tire print from the left front, which is the passenger side, right front tire, ran over Riley shoe and his leg, leaving a tread mark on his left calf. It shows you that their tire was spinning up and over Riley's leg. That is running over a pedestrian," said Johnson.
Becker said McMains attempted to pull in front of him, rather than hit him. The deputy was going 22 mph.
Becker says when considering charging McMains, there was no evidence that Doggett was run over. It was an accident that his leg got caught in the wheel, Becker explained.
McMains will not be charged.
"He could've gunned it and went right at him... and he did not do that. He's trying to cut him off. He cut it too close, and obviously, there are tragic results," Becker said. "It happens. It's a horrible thing to occur."
When the prosecutor showed the video to family and told them his decision, they were not happy, Becker said. They believe McMains should be charged.
"This isn't right for anybody, my son, somebody else's son, somebody else's family member, no police officers should be chasing people down with a vehicle. It's no body has a fighting chance against a vehicle," said Wilbert.
Leading up to the Tuesday conference, Doggett's family called for transparency from the Kent County Sheriff's Office. They asked for the release of the dashcam footage from the patrol car that hit and killed him.
In a press conference last Friday, just hours before Doggett's funeral, his family demanded justice alongside Johnson and former Kent County Commissioner Robert Womack.
The family said the only information they received from police after the incident was from a Michigan State Police detective who said the officer was trying to use his vehicle for a pit maneuver.
The sheriff's office, however, said that more information on Doggett's death would be released in the future.
“We are waiting on the Prosecutor’s evaluation of all the evidence. KCSO will release something when this review has been completed," read an earlier statement.
The community rallied for justice for Doggett and Samuel Sterling, another man hit and killed by a Michigan police vehicle in a separate incident on April 17.
"Please don't stop talking about Samuel or Riley ever, or anybody that's been hurt by police. Like they said, it doesn't matter what they did," said Riley's sister at the rally in April. "No life deserves to get taken at all."
See Becker's full charging decision below:
►Make it easy to keep up to date with more stories like this. Download the 13 ON YOUR SIDE app now.
Have a news tip? Email news@13onyourside.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter. Subscribe to our YouTube channel.
Watch 13 ON YOUR SIDE for free on Roku, Amazon Fire TV Stick, Apple TV and on your phone.