Man shot by police projectile during riot sues Grand Rapids, officers

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – A man who was shot at close range by a police riot device intended for long-range targets has filed a federal lawsuit against the city of Grand Rapids and two officers.

Sean Hart and his fiancee, Tiffany Guzman, accused police of misconduct and excessive force after he was shot in the shoulder during the May 30 riot in Grand Rapids.

Officer Phillip Reinink, who served a two-day, unpaid suspension for use of unreasonable force, is named as a defendant in the lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Grand Rapids.

Cellphone video of the incident went viral.

Reinink thought he was firing a chemical agent intended for short-range targets but instead fired “Spede-Heat CS,” a long-range projectile that is not supposed to be fired at people, police said.

Grand Rapids police declined to comment on pending litigation. A message seeking comment was left with City Attorney Anita Hitchcock.

Chief Eric Payne earlier said the officer admitted he mistakenly loaded the less-than-lethal ammunition.

The canisters look similar. Police have since color-coded the canisters.

Payne has said that his officers were trying to control a chaotic situation with rioters looting downtown businesses and torching patrol cars. Bottles, bricks and fireworks were launched at police.

The riot followed a peaceful protest earlier that day over the May 25 killing of George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man who died when a now-former Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck. The death led to protests and in some cases rioting across the country.

Hart’s attorney, Ven Johnson, said police admitted wrongdoing but he considered the punishment light. His client could have been killed, he said. The episode shows the “need for true reform, and not just police reform, it’s the entire system of justice that makes exceptions for police officers," Johnson said.

Hart and Guzman live in Ionia County’s village of Muir. They were fishing the Grand River in Grand Rapids when they heard sirens and saw smoke and decided to take a look. Hart says they were driving through the city when police in riot gear stopped them from entering a one-way street, the lawsuit said.

He wasn’t sure where to go and stopped, his attorney said. Three officers, including Reinink, “quickly approached the vehicle and illegally threatened Hart and Guzman by pointing a loaded weapon at them and screaming to make what normally would have been an illegal left turn.”

Hart made the left turn, but “shaken” by the encounter, stopped and walked toward a police line to complain about the officers' conduct. He was about 20 feet away when an officer, without warning, approached and sprayed a chemical agent – such as mace or pepper spray – in his face, his attorney said.

Reinink then “shot Hart at point blank range with a long-range projectile designed to be launched from 375-450 feet away,” Johnson said.

Hart was treated at a local hospital for burns and bruises to his eyes, face and shoulder, his attorney said. He did not use alcohol or drugs and was unarmed that night, his attorney said.

Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker earlier determined that no criminal charges would be filed against the officer.

Reinink, a seven-year officer, had no previous use-of-force complaints and is “highly respected” by colleagues, Chief Payne said earlier. He said Hart “even admitted he had bad intentions when he returned” and approached police.

The lawsuit said Hart was pointing toward Reinink and “started to ask what gave him the right to point the gun at them” when he was sprayed with the chemical agent and hit with the projectile.

None of the officers checked to see if he was OK, the lawsuit said.

Johnson said he is waiting for the Police Department to identify the officer who fired the chemical spray at his client. The unnamed officer is also a defendant.

Read more:

Officer’s unreasonable use of force in riot was mistake, not intentional, police chief says

Grand Rapids officer who fired riot device at man in viral video cleared criminally

Grand Rapids police chief: Riot, George Floyd’s ‘murder at hands of police’ traumatize many

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