While Kent County Prosecuting Attorney Chris Becker has not yet decided whether ex-Grand Rapids Police officer Christopher Schurr will be retried in the 2022 shooting death of Patrick Lyoya, Managing Partner Randall Levine explained how “officer-created jeopardy” played a role in the case.
In an interview with WWMT – News Channel 3, Levine, who is not connected to the Schurr case, said officer-created jeopardy is mostly uncharted legal territory, and the courts are trying to catch up.
“The law is developing based on what has happened in this country,” Levine said in reference to many recent high-profile court cases involving officers.
According to a law professor who testified for the state in Schurr’s trial, officer-created jeopardy is when police take risks without justification that make use of force more likely, and become criminally responsible when it results in death. It's a concept drawing controversy nationwide, but the prosecution said it applied to Schurr.
Levine said current Michigan law says a police officer’s self-defense conduct is no different than anyone else. In Schurr’s case, it all comes down to whether he reasonably believed his life was threatened, said Levine.
“Whether it's an officer or a private citizen, you can't do anything to create the harm or create the danger,” Levine said in his interview with WWMT. “It’s easy for people to Monday morning quarterback and to look at this in hindsight – that’s not the reality of police work.”
According to Levine, it’s unclear whether officer-created jeopardy will be ruled on by the Supreme Court anytime soon. For Levine, the bottom line is that policing is dangerous, and modern technology means police will have eyes on everything they do.
"Whether it's an officer or a private citizen, you can't do anything to create the harm or create the danger," he said.
It’s unclear whether officer-created jeopardy will be ruled on by the Supreme Court anytime soon.
For him, the bottom line is that policing is dangerous, and modern technology means police will have eyes on everything they do.
Watch the full interview, here.