GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – A district court judge dismissed a case against a former Michigan State Police detective charged with murder after he hit a suspect fleeing multiple warrants with his vehicle.

On Wednesday, Judge Hala Jarbou ruled that officials had insufficient evidence to proceed with the case against Brian Keely. He faced second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter charges for the April 17, 2024 death of Samuel Sterling in Kentwood.

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Keely and other members of the MSP Sixth District Fugitive Task Force tried to arrest Sterling when he fled on foot. Some officers chased him while others tracked him in their vehicles.  Keely drove an unmarked vehicle when he turned and hit Sterling in the parking lot of a Burger King restaurant. Video showed the vehicle pinning Sterling against the building.

Sterling died several hours later at the hospital. Attorney Ven Johnson is representing Sterling’s family while they navigate civil lawsuits against Keely and Kent County. Johnson said he is “disappointed” in the ruling. “It sends a troubling message that a police officer can run over an unarmed man and avoid facing a criminal jury,” Johnson said.

The judge’s ruling marks the second time in as many weeks where law enforcement received backing from the courts. A jury for the case against former Grand Rapids Police officer Christopher Schurr could not reach a verdict in his second degree murder trial.

Schurr faced charges in the death of 26-year-old Patrick Lyoya. Schurr pulled over Lyoya in April 2022 because his vehicle and plates did not match. Schurr said he shot Lyoya after he resisted arrest and reached for his taser. Toxicology tests later revealed Lyoya’s blood alcohol was three times the legal limit at the time of his death.