2:15-cv MAG-RSW Doc # 1 Filed 04/01/15 Pg 1 of 9 Pg ID 1 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN SOUTHERN DIVISION

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1 2:15-cv MAG-RSW Doc # 1 Filed 04/01/15 Pg 1 of 9 Pg ID 1 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN SOUTHERN DIVISION ) ERICA MOORE as ) Personal Representative of the ) Estate of AIYANA STANLEY-JONES, ) Deceased, and DOMINKA STANLEY, ) Civil Action No. ) Hon. Plaintiffs, ) ) -vs- ) ) OFFICER JOSEPH WEEKLY, and ) ROBERT ROWE in their individual and ) Official capacities, and other UNKNOWN ) MEMBERS OF THE DETROIT POLICE ) DEPARTMENT SPECIAL RESPONSE ) TEAM, THE DETROIT POLICE ) DEPARTMENT and ) THE CITY OF DETROIT, ) a Municipal corporation, jointly and ) severally ) ) Defendants. ) COMPLAINT AND JURY REQUEST Plaintiff, by and through his attorneys, Fieger, Fieger, Kenney & Harrington, P.C., and for his Complaint and Jury Demand, states as follows: INTRODUCTION 1. This is an action for money damages brought pursuant to 42 USC 1983 and 1988, and the 4 th Amendment (through the 14 th Amendment) to the United States Constitution, and under the statutes and common law of the State of Michigan against 1

2 2:15-cv MAG-RSW Doc # 1 Filed 04/01/15 Pg 2 of 9 Pg ID 2 Dertroit Police Officers Joseph Weekly, Robert Rowe and other unknown members of the Detroit Police Department and the City of Detroit. Jurisdiction is based upon 28 USC 1331 and The amount in controversy in this case is well in excess of $75,000.00, the jurisdiction minimum. PARTIES 2. Plaintiff, Erica Moore, is the duly appointed Personal Representative of the Estate of Aiyana Stanley-Jones, Deceased. She files this lawsuit in both her individual capacity and as her representative capacity on behalf of the Estate of Aiyana Stanley-Jones. 3. Dominka Stanley is the mother of seven-year-old Aiyana Stanley-Jones, deceased. 4. Detroit Police Officer Joseph Weekly is a member of the Detroit Police Department Special Response Team who shot and killed Aiyana Stanley-Jones. 5. Detroit Police Officer Robert Roe is a member of the Detroit Police Department Special Response Team who fired or threw the flash-bang grenade through the window of the lower unit in the duplex. 6. Defendants other unknown Members of the Detroit Police Response Team believed to number 20 individuals and include supervisors and officers who formulated and participated in the raid on the Lillibridge Street duplex. 7. At all times relevant to this lawsuit, Defendant City of Detroit ( City ) is a municipal corporation located in Wayne County, State of Michigan and among other services, it provides to its residents a police agency, namely the City of Detroit Police Department, which acts under the color of Michigan state law. COMMON FACTUAL ALLEGATIONS 2

3 2:15-cv MAG-RSW Doc # 1 Filed 04/01/15 Pg 3 of 9 Pg ID 3 8. At approximately 12:40 a.m. on May 16, 2010, the Detroit Police Department Special Response Team arrived at a duplex at 4054 Lillibridge Street on Detroit s Eastside to serve an arrest warrant on a homicide suspect believed to be in the upstairs unit. 9. The Detroit Police Special Response Team tossed or fired a flash-bang grenade through the front window of the lower unit in the duplex. 10. The flash-bang grenade struck the decedent, seven-year-old Aiyana Stanley- Jones, who was asleep on the couch in the downstairs unit prior to the intrusion. 11. Police then immediately blindly fired random shots into the lower duplex from the outside. 12. One of the shots fired by Detroit Special Response Team struck seven-year-old Aiyana Stanley-Jones in the neck and went into her brain, fatally injuring her. 13. In an intentional cover-up conspiracy to hide what had happened, Detroit Special Response Team Officer Joseph Weekly rushed into the house and made physical contact in the front room with Mertilla Jones, Aiyana Stanley-Jones grandmother. 14. Aiyana s father, Charles Jones, entered the front room of the lower unit in time to see his mother, Mertilla Jones being detained and to observe his mortally wounded daughter being carried out of the house before Charles Jones was order to the floor and kept cuffed there for up to two hours. 15. Detroit police have confiscated the burned Disney Princess blanket Aiyana Stanley-Jones was sleeping with as well as the burned couch she was lying on when she was shot and killed. 3

4 2:15-cv MAG-RSW Doc # 1 Filed 04/01/15 Pg 4 of 9 Pg ID At all times material and relevant neither Joseph Weekly, nor Robert Rowe, nor any of the Detroit Police Department Special Response Team had any justifiable excuse or reason to throw or shoot a flash-bang grenade into the lower unit of the duplex or to discharge their weapons wildly into the unit where the seven-year-old Aiyana Stanley- Jones was sleeping. 17. Aiyana Stanley-Jones did not die immediately, and instead suffered great conscious pain and suffering as a direct and proximate result of the said acts of the Defendants Weekly and Rowe and The Detroit Police Response Team. Seven-year-old Aiyana Stanley-Jones suffered the following injuries and damages: a. Violation of her constitutional rights under the 4 th Amendment (through the 14 th Amendment) to the United States Constitution including, but not limited to, the right to be free from an unreasonable seizure of his person and/or to be free from the unnecessary and excessive use of deadly force; b. Loss of her life; c. Physical pain and suffering and emotional trauma and suffering; d. Medical, funeral and burial costs; e. Loss of wages and/or earning capacity; f. Loss of services, care, society, love, companionship, comfort and protection between Aiyana Stanley-Jones and all family members and/or persons of her Estate, as recoverable under the Michigan Wrongful Death Act, MCL That as a direct and proximate result of Defendants constitutional torts, Plaintiffs have suffered, and will continue to sustain the loss of society and companionship of their seven-year old daughter Aiyana Stanley-Jones. 4

5 2:15-cv MAG-RSW Doc # 1 Filed 04/01/15 Pg 5 of 9 Pg ID 5 COUNT I 42 U.S.C EXCESSIVE FORCE AND/OR UNLAWFUL USE OF DEADLY FORCE-DEFENDANTS JOSEPH WEEKLY AND ROBERT ROWE 19. Plaintiff incorporate by reference their allegations contained in Paragraphs 1 through 18, above, as though fully set forth herein. 20. Plaintiff seeks damages for injuries suffered by Aiyana Stanley-Jones and the members of her family as set forth and described above pursuant to 42 U.S.C against Defendants Joseph Weekly. 21. Pursuant to the 4 th Amendment (through the 14 th Amendment) to the United States Constitution, at all times relevant, Aiyana Stanley-Jones had the right to be free from unlawful seizure, excessive force, and the unlawful use of deadly force. 22. At all times relevant, as police offers acting under color of law, Defendant Joseph Weekly, Robert Rowe and other unknown members of the Detroit Police Department Special Response Team were required to obey the laws of the United States including those laws identified and described in the 4 th Amendment to the United States Constitution. 23. To the contrary, in clear violation of the United States Constitution, including but not limited to the 4 th Amendment, Defendants Joseph Weekly and Robert Rowe unlawfully seized Aiyana Stanley-Jones, used excessive force against her and unlawfully used deadly force thereby inflicting horrendous personal injuries and ultimately death from which certain damages naturally followed to the members of Aiyana Stanley-Jones family and/or Estate. 5

6 2:15-cv MAG-RSW Doc # 1 Filed 04/01/15 Pg 6 of 9 Pg ID Pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 1983, Defendants are liable for all damages allowed under federal law and under the Michigan Wrongful Death Statute MCL To the extent that the damages allowable and/or recoverable under one or both of the statutes are deemed insufficient to fully compensate the Plaintiffs and/or to punish or deter the Defendants, this Court must order additional damages to be allowed so as to satisfy any and all such inadequacies. 25. Pursuant to the unlawful and unconstitutional actions perpetrated by Defendants, Aiyana Stanley-Jones and/or the members of her family have suffered the following injuries and damages for which compensation is hereby demanded. a. Reasonable medical, funeral and burial expenses; b. Severe and permanent brain injury and death; c. Emotional distress; d. Loss of personal freedom and liberty; e. Pain and suffering; f. Fright and shock; g. Horror, outrage and indignity; h. Economic damages including lost wages and/or loss of earning capacity; i. Exemplary damages; j. Loss of love, society and companionship for the members of the Decedent s Estate; k. Loss of services, gifts and/or gratuities; l. An award of punitive damages; m. An award of hedonic damages; n. Reasonable attorney fees and costs; 6

7 2:15-cv MAG-RSW Doc # 1 Filed 04/01/15 Pg 7 of 9 Pg ID 7 o. Expenses for the administration of the Estate; and p. All other such relief which appears reasonable and just under the circumstances. WHEREFORE, Plaintiff requests that this Court award to the Estate and against the Defendants the following damages and/or relief: a. Compensation for all allowable economic damages; b. Compensation for all allowable non-economic damages; c. Punitive damages d. Hedonic damages; e. Exemplary damages; f. Attorney fees and costs; g. Interest on all allowable damages; h. Any and all additional damages allowed under Michigan law including the Wrongful Death statute, MCL i. Any and all additional damage allowed under 42 U.S.C and/or federal common law; and j. Such other and further relief as appears reasonable and just under the circumstances of this case. COUNT II 42 U.S.C VIOLATION OF CIVIL RIGHTS THROUGH SUPERVISION CUSTOMS, POLICIES, ACQUIESCENCE, AND TRAINING-DEFENDANTS UNKNOWN DETROIT SPECIAL RESPONSE TEAM SUPERVISORS, DETROIT POLICE DEPARTMETN AND CITY OF DETROIT 26. Plaintiffs incorporate by reference their allegations contained in Paragraphs 1 through 25 above as though fully set forth herein. 27. The Detroit Police Special Response Team s improper and unconstitutional fatal actions in this situation were caused by the moving force of the City s unconstitutional training and policies and procedures which have led to the establishment of a custom of 7

8 2:15-cv MAG-RSW Doc # 1 Filed 04/01/15 Pg 8 of 9 Pg ID 8 allowing the City s police officers in general and the Detroit Police Department Special Response Team, in particular, to utilize excessive and unconstitutional force against members of the public. 28. By these actions, Defendants have caused Aiyana Stanley-Jones to suffer fatal injuries, including but not limited to: a. Physical pain and suffering; b. Mental anguish; c. Fright and shock; d. Loss of personal Freedom and liberty; e. Horror, outrage, and indignity; f. Loss of love, society and companionship for members of the Decedent s Estate. WHEREFORE, Plaintiff respectfully requests that this Honorable Court enter judgment in his favor and against Defendants jointly and severally as well as award costs, interest, attorney fees and punitive damages so wrongfully incurred. COUNT III 1983 CONSPIRACY BY ALL DEFENDANTS 29. Plaintiffs incorporate by reference their allegations contained in Paragraphs 1 through 28, above, as though fully set forth herein. 30. Upon Defendants realizing that they had critically injured the seven-year-old girl, they intentionally conspired to cover-up their unlawful acts by providing false and fictitious information to the authorities and to the media regarding the shooting of Aiyana Stanley-Jones, including falsely claiming that the bullet that killed her was fired from inside the lower unit of the duplex rather than from the outside, and that the discharge of 8

9 2:15-cv MAG-RSW Doc # 1 Filed 04/01/15 Pg 9 of 9 Pg ID 9 the firearm was the result of a physical struggle between Mertilla Jones, Aiyana s grandmother and the Defendant members of the Detroit Police Special Response Team. 31. Defendant acted in concert to cover-up the facts and circumstances of the fatal shooting of Aiyana Stanley-Jones. 32. As soon as Defendants realize that they had entered the wrong unit of the duplex and had burned, shot and mortally wounded the innocent seven year old Aiyana Stanley- Jones, they mutually, either tacitly or overtly, agreed to commence a conspiracy to coverup the facts of what they had done. 33. Defendants conspiracy sought to deprive Plaintiff Aiyana Stanley-Jones and her family of their constitutional rights. WHEREFORE, Plaintiff respectfully requests that this Honorable Court enter judgment in his favor and against Defendants jointly and severally as well as award costs, interest, attorney fees and punitive damages so wrongfully incurred. REQUEST FOR JURY TRIAL Plaintiffs, by and through their attorneys, Fieger, Fieger, Kenney & Harrington, P.C., hereby request a trial by jury in the above-captioned matter. Dated: April 1, 2015 Respectfully Submitted /s/ GEOFFREY N. FIEGER GEOFFREY N. FIEGER (P30441) Attorneys for Plaintiff West Ten Mile Road Southfield, MI (248) g.fieger@fiegerlaw.com 9