Sterling City Council approves donating 2 police squad cars to Ukraine
Mar. 7—STERLING — The Sterling City Council on Monday approved donating two 2021 Ford Interceptor squad cars to Ukraine.
The surplus vehicles were recently taken out of service and stripped of their police equipment.
The donation is being coordinated through US Ambulances for Ukraine, a group based in central Illinois that has already delivered 90 vehicles to Ukraine, including ambulances and firetrucks.
In 2023, the City Council approved donating an out-of-service fire apparatus to the group.
"These donations demonstrate Sterling's commitment to global peace and safety, emphasizing unity over division and providing essential lifesaving resources to Ukraine's citizens," Sterling Mayor Diana Merdian said in an interview with Shaw Local News Network.
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03-06-2025
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Sterling family ‘sick,' ‘devastated' after judge tosses murder case against former MSP sgt.
Editor's note: The video above aired May 29, 2025. GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Samuel Sterling's parents say they are devastated and in disbelief after a federal judge threw out the murder case against the former Michigan State Police sergeant in the death of their son. More than a year after she lost her son, the back of Andrica Cage's shirt said it all: 'A mother's love never dies.' The front was a picture of Sterling with angel wings on his back. As she honors her son, she says she has lost hope in the justice system. 'I got hope in God,' she said. 'That's what I'm going to stick with.' Judge tosses case against former MSP sgt in death of Samuel Sterling In April 2024, police were pursuing the 25-year-old Sterling for multiple felony warrants and tracked him down to a Kentwood gas station. Officers chased Sterling on foot to a nearby Burger King while Keely pursued in an unmarked cruiser. Video shows Detective Sgt. Brian Keely's SUV hitting Sterling near the restaurant entrance. Sterling died hours later. A federal judge dismissed against Keely last week, ruling that he's entitled to immunity under the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution because he was acting as a federal law enforcement officer. The judge also said prosecutors didn't prove Keely intentionally killed Sterling. 'I was sick,' Cage said. 'I threw up. I cried. It was just unbelievable that a judge can actually dismiss something.' Sterling's dad Michael Sterling believes a jury would have found Keely guilty. As of now, they won't get their day in court. He said it's a slap in the face. 'I'm not surprised, but I'm very hurt, devastated, sad, angry,' he said. 'All the above.' 'Abomination of justice': Community leaders react to Keely case dismissal Kent County Commissioner Robert S. Womack, who has been working with the family, said 'this was a death that could have been avoided.' 'Somewhere there has to be justice for them to know that the state of Michigan recognizes this was a life that was taken,' he said. Keely's attorneys say he is vindicated by the decision. They argue he was doing his job in a high-risk situation and protecting the public from someone they say was a dangerous fugitive. 'This ruling not only vindicates our client but also sends a strong message in support of those who serve with honor and integrity,' Keely attorneys Marc E. Curtis and Lance LoRusso said in a statement. AG says she's mulling appeals in Keely case Attorney General Dana Nessel, who brought the charges against Keely and is considering appealing, said the ruling was unprecedented. 'The way this case was decided was nothing short of a miscarriage of justice,' Nessel told News 8 last week. Attorney Ven Johnson is representing the Sterling family in a civil excessive force lawsuit. He said the judge's decision to throw out the criminal case is 'revictimizing the victims.' 'I've never seen anything like this in my life after nearly 40 years of practice,' he said. Sterling's parents remain at a loss over how the murder case didn't make it to trial. 'Now it's blood on that judge's hand,' Cage said. 'It wasn't just blood on Brian Keely's hand. Now it's blood on her hand. As I always tell everybody I'm a God-fearing mother, so I'm going to let God handle this.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
29-05-2025
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Charges dropped for ex-MSP sergeant who fatally struck a man with unmarked SUV
A federal judge dismissed charges against a former Michigan State Police sergeant who struck a man with an unmarked patrol car as the man attempted to flee officers, ruling May 28 the officer has immunity from state prosecution under a federal protection clause. In May 2024, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel's office charged former MSP Detective Sgt. Brian Keely with one charge of second-degree murder and an alternate charge of involuntary manslaughter. Video released last year by the MSP showed Keely, driving an unmarked patrol vehicle, striking 25-year-old Samuel Sterling with the car as Sterling attempted to run away from law enforcement officers in Kentwood, a suburb of Grand Rapids, in April 2024. Nessel had issued the charges in Kent County district court but Keely's attorneys had argued the case should be moved to federal court because the former sergeant was part of a U.S. Marshal's Service task force at the time he struck Sterling. In August, the case was moved to U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan, where Judge Hala Jarbou dismissed the case May 28. Sterling was putting air in a vehicle's tires at a gas station when officers approached him April 17, 2024. He tried to run away. Law enforcement pursued Sterling on foot and in vehicles. Sterling was running through the parking lot of a fast food restaurant when he was struck by an unmarked SUV. After being struck, Sterling told officers his whole body was in pain and struggled to move as officers handcuffed and searched him while he was on the ground, video footage shows. Sterling was transported to a local hospital and died hours later. Nessel, when announcing the charges, said Keely had created a very high risk of death or great bodily harm when he struck Sterling. But Jarbou stated prosecutors failed to show Keely acted with malicious intent. Jarbou cited the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution, writing since the task force Keely was a part of was focused on apprehending criminal suspects, he was carrying out his duties at the time he struck Sterling. Court documents show Sterling had outstanding felony warrants when he fled from officers who approached him. The Supremacy Clause allows federal law to prevail over conflicting state law. Jarbou wrote "the State has not presented sufficient evidence to create a genuine dispute about whether Keely acted pursuant to federal law and did no more than what was necessary and proper for him to do in attempting to apprehend Sterling. Accordingly, Keely is entitled to immunity under the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution." Marc Curtis, a Norton Shores attorney who represented Keely, said in a statement: 'We are grateful that the Court recognized this case for what it truly was — a law enforcement officer doing his job in a high-risk encounter with a known fugitive." Nessel said May 28 her office stands by its arguments that Keely was not acting reasonably when he struck Sterling. Prosecutors had argued that Keely was not entitled to federal protections because he was employed by MSP and was just a member of a Marshal's Service task force. 'I am disappointed that the case's transfer to federal court ultimately resulted in its dismissal and am deeply concerned with the precedent it sets — that individuals deemed federal officers by federal authorities can commit lethal crimes against Michigan residents with impunity," Nessel said in a statement. Ven Johnson, a Detroit attorney representing Sterling's estate in a separate, civil lawsuit against Keely, said in a statement the ruling "sends a troubling message that a police officer can run over an unarmed man and avoid facing a criminal jury." Jarbou is also the presiding judge in the civil lawsuit. Contact Arpan Lobo: alobo@ This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Charges dropped for ex-MSP sergeant who fatally struck man with SUV
Yahoo
29-05-2025
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Judge tosses case against former MSP sgt in death of Samuel Sterling
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Citing immunity under the Supremacy Clause, a federal judge has tossed the case of a former Michigan State Police sergeant who hit a man with a cruiser. Brian Keely, charged with second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter in the death of Samuel Sterling last year, will not face federal charges, court documents say. Looking to arrest , 25, of Grand Rapids, on a number of warrants, authorities tracked him to a Kentwood gas station in . Police say he ran away when they moved in to get him. Officers chased him on foot to a nearby Burger King while Keely pursued in an unmarked cruiser. Video released by MSP shows Sterling being hit by Keely's SUV near the restaurant's entrance. Sterling was hospitalized and died hours later. Family: Man hit by unmarked cruiser was father, rapper In August, U.S. District Court Judge Hala Jarbou decided that because Keely was operating as part of a U.S. Marshals task force, the case fell under federal jurisdiction. She moved it out of the state courts and . Jarbou on Wednesday granted a motion from Keely's attorneys to dismiss the charges against him, saying the state does not have enough evidence to dispute Keely's actions. Ex-MSP sgt details moments leading to deadly crash Keely had argued that he was immune under the Supremacy Clause because he was acting as a federal officer when attempting to arrest Sterling, and therefore cannot be face criminal prosecution under state law. To be granted immunity, it needs to be proven that Keely was acting in an authorized way under U.S. law and that he did not do more than was necessary and proper to carry it out. In the dismissal motion, the judge said that the state had originally argued Keely had criminal intent, acted with 'malice' and seemed to argue he 'intended to kill or harm Sterling.' The state did not provide evidence that Keely 'turned his wheel sharply toward Sterling or intentionally killed him,' the court documents say. While the state later disclaimed that hurting or killing Sterling was intentional, it still argued he could be found guilty of second-degree murder or involuntary manslaughter if he acted 'in disregard of life-endangering consequences.' 'The Court is not persuaded by the State's argument,' the court documents say. It noted that there were several warrants out for Sterling's arrest, including a domestic violence charge. It also notes Sterling led multiple officers on a long chase in a populated area as he tried to evade arrest. Former MSP sergeant asks for stay in civil case It was reasonable for Keely to assume Sterling was armed, the court documents say, and therefore a threat to the public and officers. Citing Keely's expert witness, the documents say the safety threat would have increased if he was able to get into the Burger King, where he could have taken a hostage or ambushed officers. 'Considering these factors, even if Keely's actions were risky, he made a reasonable decision to try to block or deter Sterling from entering the restaurant in order to prevent more serious risks to the public and to the officers created by Sterling's flight,' the documents say. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel in a statement said she stands by the arguments her team made in court. 'I am disappointed that the case's transfer to federal court ultimately resulted in its dismissal and am deeply concerned with the precedent it sets—that individuals deemed federal officers by federal authorities can commit lethal crimes against Michigan residents with impunity,' she said in a statement. 'Such a precedent is dangerous and fundamentally undermines the principles of justice and accountability our legal system is meant to uphold.' She said it is regrettable the case was never presented to a jury, adding that 'no one should be above the law.' Nessel added that she is grateful for the work of her team. Vigil marks one year since Samuel Sterling's death 'My heart breaks for the loved ones left behind by Mr. Sterling and the community who mourns him,' she said. 'This outcome is nothing short of a miscarriage of justice and my Department is considering our next steps.' Keely's attorneys in a release said the ruling 'brings long-overdue relief to an officer who was doing his job to protect the public from a dangerous fugitive who escalated the situation by choosing to flee and place both officers and the community at risk.' 'We are grateful that the Court recognized this case for what it truly was — a law enforcement officer doing his job in a high-risk encounter with a known fugitive,' Keely attorneys Marc E. Curtis and Lance LoRusso said in a statement. 'This ruling not only vindicates our client but also sends a strong message in support of those who serve with honor and integrity.' Nessel said she's exploring options to appeal. In civil court, attorneys representing the family of Samuel Sterling have filed an excessive force lawsuit. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
