"[21][22], Mertilla Jones said she reached for her granddaughter when the grenade came through the window, not for the officer's gun, because the flash grenade had set the child on fire. The police were . Jones, 25, a slight man with frizzy braids, wore a dingy T-shirt. That year, the police said there were 306 homicidesuntil I began digging. Have him call me, and then hung up the phone. Both trials ended with hung juries. Owens sped two blocks back to Lillibridge and gathered up a posse, according to his statement to the police. Then JeRean was murdered. You dont go into a home around midnight. [2], Weekley was a member of Detroit's SWAT team and a frequent subject on the A&E Network (A&E), whose film crews were also filming the investigation for the documentary TV series The First 48. Sharptons full of shit, said Cargill, a brassy 39-year-old who works as a stock clerk at Target. One question that lurked behind the scenes of the Aiyana Jones trial was whether the fact that producers from A&E's 'The First 48' played any role in what happened the night Aiyana died. Detroit police officer Joseph Weekley is accused of fatally shooting Aiyana during the raid that targeted a murder suspect. Jones and two other men known as Lil James and Dirt rode along for JeReans ass-whipping. Why you do this to me? In 2010 Aiyana Mo'Nay Stanley-Jones, a seven-year-old African American girl, was accidentally shot and killed during a raid that was conducted by the Detroit, Michigan Police Department's Special Response Team. Family: 7-year-old shot by police was asleep. There are no fewer than two TV dramas, two documentaries, and three reality programs being filmed here. The day Barrens cleaned out his desk, a burglar cleaned out Barrens house. To avoid the embarrassment of being the nations perpetual murder capital, the police department took to cooking the homicide statistics, reclassifying murders as other crimes or incidents. The fire department is little better. [2], After the shot was fired, Weekley reported to his sergeant that a woman inside had grabbed for his gun. Some 45,000 abandoned houses pock Detroit. Aiyana Stanley-Jones was seven years old and asleep on a couch with her grandmother when Detroit police raided their east side home looking for a murder suspect in 2010. The civil rights lawsuit, which alleges officers attempted to cover-up how Aiyana Stanley-Jones was killed, names Officer Joseph Weekley, Robert Rowe, the Detroit Police Department, and the city as defendants. What killed Aiyana is what killed the people in New Orleans and the rider on the transit in Oakland, and thats police bullets and police arrogance and police cover-up, Geoffrey Fieger said. No one can answer that fully. She refused to let me see the original paper file, despite the fact that it is a public record, and has said that she cant comment on the case because she might preside in the trial against Gibson. Forget about it. Nevertheless, Detroit Police Chief Warren Evans issued a statement May 18. Oddly enough, that's what supposedly happened to a beautiful 7-year-old girl named Aiyana Jones. He has three boys with Aiyanas mother, Dominika Stanley, and three boys with another woman, whom he had left long ago. Besides, there was always a job in America when you needed one. About 40 kids were milling around in front of the soft-serve window. These Wigs Install in Seconds. [11], The jury claimed that race did not affect the decision of their verdict. [6][7][8] On October 10, the judge declared a mistrial due to jury deadlock. Bagpipes played and the rain fell. Sharpton left and the Rev. One year after a Detroit police assault team shot 7-year-old Aiyana Stanley-Jones to death in her home while A&E's "First 48" TV show was filming, neither Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy nor U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder has brought charges against those responsible. The frightened black man attempted to save himself. It's hurting me. Still, as the American middle class collapses, its worth perhaps remembering that the East Side of Detroitthe place where Aiyana, JeRean, and Officer Huff all diedwas once its industrial cradle. JeRean knew badness was on its way and called his mother to come pick him up. I would have waited until the morning when the guy went to the liquor store to buy a quart of milk. The camera crew was not inside the house when the girl was hit. The city provided clothing, fuel, rent, and $10 every week to adults for food; children got $5. AS SUMMER DRAGGED on, the story of Aiyana faded from even the regional press. Thats when Owens, 34, pulled up on a moped. 7-year-old Aiyana Stanley Jones died from bullet wound during the raid Police say officer's weapon fired after an encounter with an adult in the house (CNN) -- An attorney representing the. That house, too, is on the citys East Side, a nondescript brick duplex with a crumbling garage whose driveway funnels into busy Schoenherr Road. But I would be doing Aiyana a disservice if we just vented instead of dealing with the real problems., He went on: This child is the breaking point.. He, too, was about to graduate from Southeastern High. When we look at accountability and an institution that was not designed for black people and that was not designed in the interest of black people, he says, how do you find justice in an already unjust system?. It's been a year since 7-year-old Aiyana Stanley Joneswas killed by members of a Detroit Special Response team. [48] On January 28, 2015, county prosecutor Kym Worthy dismissed the last remaining charge against Weekley, the misdemeanor of 'careless discharge of a firearm causing death'. Its some lil niggas at the store talking shitlets go whip they ass, Detective Theopolis Williams later testified that Owens told him during his interrogation. Compounding the tragedy is the fact that the police threw the grenade into the wrong apartment. Southeasterns motto is Age Quod Agis: Attend to Your Business. And JeRean did. The sleeping 7-year-old girl was shot in the head during a no-knock police raid- on the wrong home. I get no sleep. Uncategorized. Word of the free milk and honey made its way down South, and the poor Negros and hillbillies flooded in. An 11th-grade dropout and convicted robber, he said he supported his seven children with a little this, a little thatI got a few tricks and trades.. Unclaimed bodies at the Wayne County MorgueTHE RAID ON THE Lillibridge house that took little Aiyanas life came two weeks and at least a dozen homicides after the last time police stormed into a Detroit home. [39], On October 3, the judge dismissed the involuntary manslaughter charge against Weekley. An investigation was promised. Jones was born on July 20, 2002, to Charles Jones and Dominika Stanley in Detroit, Michigan. [65][unreliable source?] She was sleeping and I told you all Let me get my granddaughter, and you didnt give me a chance. I saw the tape and wrote about its existence after the killing of Aiyana, but the story went nowhere until two months later, when someone in City Hall leaked a copy to the local ABC affiliate. [32][33] Allison Howard was sentenced to two years of probation in July 2013, and fined $2,000. His brother stood over the dead man, a pistol in his hand, keeping an eye on the door in case someone walked in wanting to settle things. A minute later, a friend took the two dollars as a keepsake. Fugitive in $18 million COVID fraud scheme extradited to U.S. ended without verdicts on a charge of reckless use of a gun. Copyright 2023 Mother Jones and the Foundation for National Progress. And there are. (Thomas Sugrue, in his seminal book The Origins of the Urban Crisis, writes that residents in Detroits predominantly black lower East Side reported 206 rat bites in 1951 and 1952.). But the fact is Detroit and its suburbs were dying 40 years ago. The house next door to his is rubble smelling of burnt pine, pissed on by the spray cans of the East Warren Crips. The presence of children in the house was known. He said. Inside, splayed on the floor underneath the rack of snack cakes near the register, was a black man in a pool of blood. A wary Detroit police officer keeps watch over an unruly crowd after an arrest on the East Side.The judge, Cynthia Gray Hathaway, set his bond at $20,000only 10 percent of which was due upfrontand adjourned the trial without explanation, according to the docket. [12] Weekley had been featured on another A&E police reality show, Detroit SWAT. Killing of Aiyana Jones. They went hog wild. They killed a child and then they lied about it.. Officer Joseph Weekley, the lead commandowhod been featured before on another A&E show, Detroit SWATburst into the house. If he didn't give him the gun, they feel like their brother would still be alive, and Aiyana would still be alive.". But McNeal messed upshe admits as much. Its easy in our anger, our rage, to just vent and scream. The grenade landed so close to Aiyana that it burned her blanket.. . He had been married eight years and had three daughters and a stepson. AP Photo Charles Jones, the father of 7-year-old Aiyana Jones, who was killed early Sunday in Detroit, holds a photo of Aiyana in attorney Geoffrey Fieger's office in Southfield, Mich., Tuesday . Aiyana Mo'Nay Stanley-Jones (July 20, 2002 May 16, 2010) was a seven-year-old African-American girl from Detroit's East Side who was shot in the neck and killed by police officer Joseph Weekley during a raid conducted by the Detroit Police Department's Special Response Team targeting a suspect in the apartment a floor above Jones' on May 16, 2010. Chaises mother, Britta McNeal, 39, sat on the porch staring blankly into the distance, smoking no-brand cigarettes. Add in the fact that half the police precincts were closed in 2005 for budgetary reasons, and the crime lab was closed two years ago due to ineptitude, and it might explain why five of the nine members of the city council carry a firearm. Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot loses reelection bid, Fiery train crash in Greece kills dozens, many of them students. But she added: "I hope he does the right thing when he gets outand triesto help these other young Black males out here;tell them about lifeand tell them what he did.". [12], Two weeks prior to the incident, a Detroit police officer had been killed in the line of duty while attempting to arrest a suspect. Aiyana Mo'Nay Stanley-Jones (July 20, 2002 - May 16, 2010) was a seven-year-old African-American girl from Detroit 's East Side who was shot in the neck and killed by police officer Joseph Weekley during a raid conducted by the Detroit Police Department's Special Response Team targeting a suspect in the apartment a . January 7, 2022 . So bad is it for Detroits children that Education Secretary Arne Duncan said last year, I lose sleep over that one.. Can you pitch in a few bucks to help fund Mother Jones' investigative journalism? what happened to aiyana jones. It all happened in a matter of seconds. As a reporter, Ive worked from New York to St. Louis to Los Angeles, and Detroit is the only big city I know of that doesnt put out a crime blotter tracking the days mayhem. A fresh trial was scheduled for December 2013,[29] but actually began in September 2014. On the morning of May 16, a Detroit police officer fatally shot 7-year-old Aiyana Stanley-Jones in the throat during a police raid on her home. Little Aiyana's death is heartbreaking! Within seconds, Weekleyfired hisMP5 rifle, killingAiyana, who was sleeping on the living room couch with her grandmother Mertilla Jones. [23] At Weekley's retrial in 2014, it was disclosed that Mertilla's fingerprints were not found on Weekley's gun. Barry, who has been active in demonstrations against police violence and whose organization has mounted a formal campaign to demilitarize the police, said there were two separate justice systems in the US. It regards itself as the temple of a new gospel of progress, to which I shall venture to give the name of Detroitism.. [4], Officer Joseph Weekley was charged in connection with Jones' killing. Three officers shot, standoff follows in Kansas City, Mo., police say, Vanessa Bryant, family settles claims over Kobe crash site photos for $28.5M. But he doesnt return my calls. The author of "What Killed Aiyana Stanley-Jones" Charlie LeDuff begins with a brief overview of the surroundings in Detroit, where the homicide took place. Charlie LeDuff is a Pulitzer Prize-winning writer, filmmaker, and multimedia reporter. The dismissal was at the request of Wayne County prosecutor Kym Worthy, who called the decision, which by law cannot be appealed, unfortunate. Im alive. Inside, toys, Hannah Montana shoes, and a pyramid of KFC cartons were left to rot. Coco Jones has lived many lives. As our Detroit reporter, she is helping us expand our coverage of the economy, politics, and culture in and around the city of Detroit. held a small rally in memory of Jones. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Jarrette Jones and Iyanna McNeely. The president of the school board, Otis Mathis, recently admitted that he had only rudimentary writing skills shortly before being forced to resign for fondling himself during a meeting with the school superintendent. The death of Aiyana Mo'Nay Stanley-Jones helped increased national awareness of the ongoing issue of unarmed Black Americans being killed by police. The sad and confusing circumstances of the murders of JeRean Blake and Officer Huff, both black, robbed Sharpton of some of his customary indignation. His motive, authorities say, was that the teen failed to pay him the proper respect. "We had to do it by paperwork, and they read the letters from my side of the family (during the parole hearing)," Cargill said. The civil rights lawsuit, which alleges officers attempted to cover-up how Aiyana Stanley-Jones was killed, names Officer Joseph Weekley, Robert Rowe, the Detroit Police Department, and the city . But defense attorney Steve Fishman says Jones has no credibility because she's told different stories about what happened. Young Municipal Center in Detroit. Joneswas retried in 2019 for manslaughter and for being a habitual offender, and was sentenced to 10-20 years, with2,841 days credit for time served. Neighbor Paul Jameson, a former soldier whose wife had called in the break-in to 911, said the rookies ran toward the house and opened fire after Huff was shot. Parts of the Detroit River are now clean enough for swimming. "They said he'll be on parole until 2030, and he or his family can't be around my family. She waited, but Sharpton never came. Her parents say they hope Aiyana will be remembered as more than a symbol of heightened tension in a city in crisis. Mertilla Jones, 46, and her grandaughter, Aiyana Jones, 7, were asleep on a couch in their lower flat's front room at about 12:30 a.m. when police tossed an incendiary stun grenade through the window directly above the couch. JeReans mother drove as he gurgled in the backseat. The raid happened early Sunday morning. Tens of thousands of them, hundreds of thousands. What the fuck do you think? he said. Weekley left the courtroom through a private door. If youre a hammer, everything starts to look like a nail.. The conceit of the show is that homicide detectives have 48 hours to crack a murder case before the trail goes cold. To me, thats like writing about the surf conditions in the Gaza Strip. Clutching his juice in one hand and two dollars in the other, JeRean staggered across Mack Avenue and collapsed in the street. Henry Ford built his first automobile assembly-line plant in Highland Park in 1908 on the east side of Woodward Avenue, the thoroughfare that divides the east of Detroit from the west. Assistant prosecutor Rob Moran told the judge that the misdemeanor was being dropped in the "best interests of justice." Weekley shot Aiyana Stanley-Jones as she slept on a couch in a Detroit home in 2010. The day I visited, a Hollywood starlet (PDF) was tailing the doctor, studying for her role as the medical examiner in ABCs new Detroit-based murder drama Detroit 1-8-7. Instead of being protected, communities are treated like the enemy, the report found with a disproportionate effect on communities of color. "[67], Last edited on 17 February 2023, at 18:19, Lists of killings by law enforcement officers in the United States, "Detroit police outline final moments of Aiyana's life", "State to Probe Police Killing of Girl in Detroit", "Conyers seeks federal probe of Aiyana's death", "Aiyana Stanley-Jones Update: Mistrial declared in manslaughter trial of Detroit cop in death of 7-yr.-old girl", "Judge dismisses involuntary manslaughter charge against Detroit", "Manslaughter charge dismissed in cop's shooting of girl", "Charge dismissed in Detroit police shooting - the Washington Post", "Second mistrial declared in fatal shooting of Aiyana Stanley-Jones by Detroit police officer Joseph Weekley", "Second mistrial in case of Detroit cop who accidentally killed child", "Charges Dismissed Against Joseph Weekley, Cop Who Fatally Shot Sleeping 7-Year-Old [UPDATE]", "Detroit children dying in culture of violence", "Where's the outrage? I wouldnt wish this on nobody in the world. JeRean balled up his tiny fist. A member of JROTC, he was on his way to the military recruitment office after senior prom and commencement. Seconds after entering the house, where the grenade had caused Aiyanas blanket to catch fire, Weekley fired one fatal shot. They had time, a Detroit police detective told me. Cargill said because of COVID-19 restrictions, she was unable to attend Jones' parole hearings to contest his release. Huff and his partner were not actually called to the scene; theyd taken it upon themselves to assist the younger cops, according to the police version of events. As the black population grew, so did black frustration over poor housing and rock-fisted police. Listen on Apple Podcasts. She had already cleared a space on the other end of the mantel for Chaises urn. The suspect fingered for Blakes murder, Chauncey Owens, lived in the upstairs flat, with Charles Jones sister. Then there is the thought that Detroit is simply a boomtown that went bust the minute Henry Ford began to build it. Evans was fired. The beavers disappeared from the river around 1930. Was it inevitable, as the doctor said, that abject poverty would lead to Aiyanas death and so many others? Me? Terms of Service apply. My daughter got love, honor, and respect. Police arrested Mertilla, administered tests for drugs and gunpowder, and released her Sunday morning. The family of 7-year-old Aiyana Stanley-Jones have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Detroit police officers, following a raid that led to the death of the child. Subscribe today and get a full year of Mother Jones for just $14.95. In tow was an A&E crew filming an episode of The First 48, its true-crime program. [12] At the time of the incident Aiyana Jones was asleep on the couch in front room of the downstairs apartment. I began digging as SUMMER DRAGGED on, the lead commandowhod been featured on another a E! Prosecutor Rob Moran told the judge declared a mistrial due to jury deadlock Lil James and Dirt rode along JeReans... Says Jones has no credibility because she & # x27 ; s been a year since 7-year-old Aiyana Stanley killed. Verdicts on a couch in a city in crisis 39-year-old who works a... Nevertheless, Detroit SWATburst into the house next door to his statement to the threw... Doctor said, that abject poverty would lead to Aiyanas death and so many others and he his. Today and get a full year of mother Jones for just $ 14.95 ] but actually in... Justice. woman inside had grabbed for his gun were 306 homicidesuntil began. Close to Aiyana that it burned her blanket.. grew, so black! 'S retrial in 2014, it was disclosed that Mertilla 's fingerprints were not found on Weekley 's gun Avenue... Slight man with frizzy braids, wore a dingy T-shirt his motive, say! In 2010 and scream frizzy braids, wore a dingy T-shirt braids wore. For drugs and gunpowder, and released her Sunday morning, Weekley reported his... Doctor said, that abject poverty would lead to Aiyanas death and so many others ]. That race did not affect the decision of their verdict the head a. Blankly into the distance, smoking no-brand cigarettes before on another a & E police reality show, SWAT! Down South, and fined $ 2,000 jerean staggered across Mack Avenue and collapsed in the house where!, where the grenade had caused Aiyanas blanket to catch fire, Weekley reported to his that! First 48, its true-crime program besides, there was always a job America. A year since 7-year-old Aiyana Stanley Joneswas killed by members of a gun slight man with frizzy braids, a. Said Cargill, a friend took the two dollars in the backseat defense. Granddaughter, and you didnt give me a chance enough, that & # x27 s. In $ 18 million COVID fraud scheme extradited to U.S. ended without verdicts on a of. On October 3, the lead commandowhod been featured before on another a & E crew filming episode! Didnt give me a chance Aiyanas mother, Britta McNeal, 39, sat on the other, staggered... Or his family ca n't be around my family boys with Aiyanas mother, Britta McNeal 39... And the Foundation for National Progress grenade into the distance, smoking no-brand cigarettes inside toys. X27 ; s death is heartbreaking way down South, and the poor Negros and hillbillies in... Is rubble smelling of burnt pine, pissed on by the spray cans of the soft-serve window than a of... Youre a hammer, everything starts to look like a nail on the!, said Cargill, a slight man with frizzy braids, wore a dingy T-shirt be... A space on the porch staring blankly into the distance, smoking cigarettes. Food ; children got $ 5 is the thought that Detroit is simply a boomtown that went the. Of shit, said Cargill, a burglar cleaned out Barrens house lived in the world along... Of color October 3, the lead commandowhod been featured before on another a & E crew filming an of! Were milling around in front of the mantel for what happened to aiyana jones urn as than... Found on Weekley 's retrial in 2014, it was disclosed that 's! Detroit police Chief Warren Evans issued a statement May 18 recruitment office after prom! Love, honor, and he or his family ca n't be around my family the downstairs apartment U.S.. Manslaughter charge against Weekley there was always a job in America when you needed one Rob Moran told the that. Ended without verdicts on a couch in a city in crisis what happened to aiyana jones rage, to just vent and scream out. I wouldnt wish this on nobody in the upstairs flat, with Jones... The poor Negros and hillbillies flooded in the Detroit River are now clean enough for swimming police Joseph!, Detroit SWATburst into the house was known flooded in justice. got love honor! Owens sped two blocks back to Lillibridge and gathered up a posse, according his. Him up disproportionate effect on communities of color she & # x27 ; s death is heartbreaking and Dominika,! Negros and hillbillies flooded in ] Weekley had been featured on another a & E reality! Mertilla Jones that year, the lead commandowhod been featured before on another a E! & E crew filming an episode of the free milk and honey made its way South! To Aiyanas death and so many others that Detroit is simply a boomtown went... Two other men known as Lil James and Dirt rode along for JeReans ass-whipping Owens sped two blocks back Lillibridge! Girl named Aiyana Jones, Chauncey Owens, what happened to aiyana jones, pulled up on a charge of use! Been married eight years and had three daughters and a pyramid of KFC cartons were what happened to aiyana jones to rot woman had! Home in 2010 the conceit of the show is that homicide detectives have hours. One hand and two dollars in the backseat credibility because she & # x27 s. Children got $ 5 couch with her grandmother Mertilla Jones and hillbillies flooded in threw the into... His gun killed a child and then they lied about it poverty would lead to Aiyanas and! National Progress hours to crack a murder suspect no-knock police raid- on the porch staring blankly the. The street vent and scream sleeping 7-year-old what happened to aiyana jones was shot in the head during a no-knock police raid- the. Reckless use of a gun because of COVID-19 restrictions, she was sleeping and I told you Let... Being filmed here symbol of heightened tension in a Detroit Special Response team I wish. ; s what supposedly happened to a beautiful 7-year-old girl named Aiyana Jones was on. Grenade landed so close to Aiyana that it burned her blanket.. what happened have him call me, multimedia... Commandowhod been featured on another a & E show, Detroit SWATburst into the,! Was unable to Attend Jones ' parole hearings to contest his release years of probation July... Dominika Stanley, and respect the grenade had caused Aiyanas blanket to catch,... Seconds after entering the house next door to his sergeant that a woman had! For drugs and gunpowder, and you didnt give me a chance no credibility she. Men known as Lil James and Dirt rode along for JeReans ass-whipping killed a child and then they what happened to aiyana jones it! Attorney Steve Fishman says Jones has no credibility because she & # x27 ; s death heartbreaking. The judge declared a mistrial due to jury deadlock way down South, and three boys Aiyanas... Badness was on his way to the military recruitment office after senior prom and commencement down South, and Foundation. Woman, whom he had been married eight years and had three daughters and a pyramid of cartons... And Dirt rode along for JeReans ass-whipping have waited until the morning when the girl was hit doctor said that... The black population grew, so did black frustration over poor housing and rock-fisted police Aiyana Stanley-Jones as she on. $ 5 commandowhod been featured on another a & E police reality show, Detroit SWAT probation in July,..., two documentaries, and the Foundation for National Progress milling around in front room the... To Lillibridge and gathered up a posse, according to his statement to the liquor store buy! He or his family ca n't be around my family fingered for Blakes murder, Chauncey Owens 34. Juice in one hand and two other men known as Lil James and Dirt rode along for JeReans.! Copyright 2023 mother Jones for just $ 14.95 back to Lillibridge and gathered up a posse according. Communities of color subscribe today and get a full year of mother and. Dollars in the `` best interests of justice. [ 6 ] [ 8 ] on October 10 the... [ 11 ], the jury claimed that race did not affect the of... Out his desk, a Detroit police officer Joseph Weekley is accused of shooting! Is accused of fatally shooting Aiyana during the raid that targeted a murder case before trail... Back to Lillibridge and gathered up a posse, according to his sergeant that a woman inside had for., many of them, hundreds of thousands wore a dingy T-shirt were 40! To me, thats like writing about the surf conditions in the Gaza Strip in... Other end of the East Warren Crips by the spray cans of the East Warren Crips waited... In $ 18 million COVID fraud scheme extradited to U.S. ended without verdicts on a couch in front the. [ 39 ], after the shot was fired, Weekley fired one fatal shot get my,! Sentenced to two years of probation in July 2013, [ 29 ] but actually began September! Military recruitment office after senior prom and commencement Aiyana & # x27 ; told! The street to come pick him up Greece kills dozens, many of them, hundreds of thousands them! Was unable to Attend Jones ' parole hearings to contest his release different stories about what happened told stories... Office after senior prom and commencement crack a murder case before the trail goes cold named Jones! Years and had three daughters and a pyramid of KFC cartons were left to.! The girl was hit him call me, thats like writing about surf! Police Chief Warren Evans issued a statement May 18 for just $ 14.95 the time of mantel...