Federal court takes ex-MSP sergeant’s murder case

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — A judge has decided the murder case against a former Michigan State Police detective sergeant will be moved to federal court.

In a ruling filed Monday, U.S. District Court Judge Hala Jarbou agreed with former sergeant Brian Keely’s defense team that — though he was employed by MSP — he was acting as a federal officer on the day that Samuel Sterling died and that the case therefore falls under federal jurisdiction.

“Keely was acting solely in his capacity as a federal task force officer, performing a task given to him by a federal superior, within the scope of his federal office,” the judge said in a written opinion.

Jarbou, who heard arguments in the matter last week , highlighted that MSP officers assigned to the U.S. Marshals Service task force had to be approved by the federal agency, that Keely took an oath of office with the Marshals and that the Marshals “conferred on him a special title and authority.”

“Although Keely was employed by the MSP, the USMS appointed him as a Special Deputy U.S. Marshal with authority to execute warrants accepted by the USMS task force. He was exercising that authority at the time of Sterling’s death, which makes him a federal officer for purposes of the removal statute,” the opinion said.

Lewis Langham with Cooley Law pointed out a few things that may be considered a little different in federal court.

“There’s a larger jury pool, approximately 55-56 counties in which jurors would be selected from versus just one county, Kent County, where the incident occurred,” said Langham.

In a statement to News 8 Monday, Keely’s attorney Marc Curtis said the defense team was “pleased” by Jarbou’s ruling.

“Keely was operating as a member of the US Marshal’s task force to bring a violent and dangerous felon into custody,” Curtis stated. “We look forward to continuing our vigorous defense against the AG’s wrongful prosecution of TFO (Task Force Officer) Keely in Federal Court.”

Attorney Ven Johnson, who is representing the Sterling family, released a statement after the decision.

“On behalf of the Sterling family, we, of course, will continue to support the criminal prosecution of Keely for killing an unarmed Samuel Sterling, irrespective of the forum in which it takes place,” Johnson wrote, in part.

On April 17 , authorities tracked the 25-year-old Sterling, who was wanted on a number of warrants, to a Kentwood gas station. Police say he ran away when they moved in to get him. Officers chased him on foot to a nearby Burger King while Keely pursued in an unmarked cruiser. Video released by MSP shows Sterling being hit by Keely’s SUV near the restaurant’s entrance. Sterling was hospitalized and died hours later.

The Michigan Attorney General’s Office ultimately charged Keely, 50, of Grand Rapids, with second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter.

The federal decision pulls the case out of Kent County courts. A Kent County District Court judge had ruled last week that there was sufficient probable cause to send the case to Kent County Circuit Court for trial, saying there is evidence to suggest Keely “knowingly created a very high risk of death or great bodily harm” when he chased “an individual on foot by a 4,000-pound automobile.”

“There was testimony that there was no weapon observed on the decedent during the pursuit and no force was used by the decedent,” Judge Amanda Sterkenburg also pointed out. “No other officers continued in vehicle pursuit, therefore there does not appear to be justification for the defendant’s conduct.”

Prosecutors argue there is evidence Keely steered his SUV toward Sterling, but Keely’s defense attorneys say there is also evidence he was braking when the crash happened. They say Keely didn’t mean to hit Sterling and instead intended to block him from getting into the Burger King.

Sterkenburg acknowledged there is “conflicting evidence” as to whether Keely acted with malice and said that there are arguments to be presented to a jury about the speed of Keely’s SUV, braking, the effect of wet pavement on the crash and whether Keely was warranted in his belief that Sterling could threaten or harm someone in the Burger King.

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