The case of inappropriate conduct by Grosse Pointe Park police officers has several fresh developments.
The most attention-getting turn involves public comments Wednesday afternoon by a Detroiter (above) who says officers in the suburb insisted he make strange sounds, which they videotaped. Serena Maria Daniels of The Detroit News is among reporters who spoke with him:
Michael Scipio was among about 30 protesters of the Marcus Garvey Movement on Wednesday outside police headquarters voicing their frustrations over the alleged incident. Scipio identified himself as the man depicted in the video footage and said it was in fact Grosse Pointe Park police who recorded him.
Scipio said he did not know when the footage might have been taken and that he has had many encounters with Grosse Pointe Park police, who've stopped him for public intoxication.
The noon protest was a response to coverage started by journalist Steve Neavling, a former Free Press reporter who blogs at Motor City Muckraker. Last Thursday night he posted the first two of three grainy cellphone videos that reportedly show Grosse Pointe Park officers ridiculing African Americans.
Inside the suburban police station, community activist Malik Shabazz, who organized the protest, met with department brass who earlier announced an internal investigation.
In his latest post, which includes the photo atop this article, Neavling quotes Shabazz during the public event outside with Scipio:
"We want the Grosse Pointe Police Department to give justice to this man. This is a human rights violation. This is a civil rights violation.
“We want the police department to fire whoever was involved.”
Also Wednesday, news reports from WXYZ and Fox 2 said state police investigators are looking into the situation at the request of local officials. That not the case, at least not yet, according to Daniels' coverage in The News:
Michigan State Police Lt. Mike Shaw said Wednesday that state police were not investigating the allegations, nor has the department been contacted regarding the matter.
The city hired public relations consultant Greg Bowens, a former Detroit mayoral press secretary who lives in Grosse Pointe Paerk, to assist with media relations and crisis management.
He tells Smita Kalokhe of WXYZ that the city has a "heavy heart" after seeing the three videos.
If the allegations are true, Bowens says the officer's potentially racist actions are not representative of the city. Bowens says 17% of Grosse Pointe Park's population is African-American, and women and minorities own 40% of the city's businesses.
Here's what Bowens told Randy Wimbley of Fox 2:
"This is not a true reflection of who we are as a community. As a result, the city has had a conversation with Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy who made a suggestion that we reach out to the Michigan State Police to conduct their own investigation."
Earlier coverage: Grosse Pointe Park Police Investigate Report Cops Made Racially Charged Videos, Nov. 18
Cops Dehumanize Blacks for Fun, Nov., 18
Greg Bowens, the suburb's spokesperson, is an occasional columnist on political and civic affairs for Deadline Detroit.
