Detroit, Michigan

In November 2023, a judge approved a $5 million settlement against Funderburg and the City of Detroit, paid to Woodards’ daughter, Melissa Connelly. Prior to the incident, Funderburg had a poor driving record: she had lost her license twice and also hit someone else when she ran a red light. 

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in 2021, alleged that Detroit Police officers made Islamophobic comments caught on body camera, including claims that “Muslims lie a lot” and “Muslim men are pedophiles,” before falsely arresting the men with what appeared to be no probable cause. The men, who had called 911 for help with a woman having a mental health crisis, were detained for three days before prosecutors declined to file charges. In a statement announcing the settlement, which included monetary compensation, CAIR-MI leaders said they hoped Detroit Police would implement proper training to prevent future incidents of biased policing and emphasized that no one seeking emergency assistance should fear being profiled based on their faith.

In 1992, Ricks was convicted of fatally shooting his friend Gerry Bennett in the head outside of a restaurant. During the investigation, police seized a gun that belonged to Ricks’ mother and claimed that it was the murder weapon. After the case was reopened in 2016 on request by the Innocence Clinic at University of Michigan Law School, further examination revealed that the bullets that killed Bennett did not match the ones found in Ricks’ mother’s gun. An expert working for the City testified during depositions that the original bullet analysis by the police lab had been completely wrong.

Detroit resident Kira Thorne filed a lawsuit against the city alleging that the police department violated her civil rights by shooting her dog without cause during a narcotics raid. This is the fourth lawsuit in recent history where Detroit police have shot and killed a resident’s dog.

According to the reporting of local news source 7 Action News, the City of Detroit paid $19.1 million for police misconduct settlements between 2015 and 2018. Two of the larger settlements, for $400,000 and $925,000, respectively, arose from unlawful shooting claims.