Michigan Police Say They Mistakenly Detained 12-Year-Old Black Boy As A Suspect In Car Thefts

Michigan Police Mistakenly Detain 12-Year-Old Black Boy They Believe To Be A Suspect In A String Of Car Thefts

A viral video posted on Tik Tok shows police mistakenly detaining a young Black man they believed to be a suspect in a string of car thefts in the Michigan area.

Well, the incident left the boy traumatized and now the department is addressing the situation, calling it an “unfortunate misunderstanding.”

In the video it shows the young man in a parking lot near a dumpster. Shortly after a police officer officer handcuffs him. A man who appears to be his father comes out and goes off on the officers for detaining his young son.

 

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“They traumatized my son,” the man can be heard saying in the video.

The father and the person recording can both be heard saying that the young boy wasn’t doing anything but taking out the trash.

In a Facebook statement posted on Friday, Lansing police said the young man, wearing neon shorts and a white shirt, matched the description of a car theft suspect that officers were actively pursuing. The officer who initially detained the young man then was able to “clarify” he was not the suspect, the statement said.

The video then shows the young Black man being released as his father speaks to police officers.