- Police Brutality Watch

Family members of a 40-year-old man gunned down this week in downtown Detroit by a Michigan State Police trooper gathered for a vigil Friday at the shooting scene and demanded criminal charges. "It's one of the most outrageous incidents I have ever heard of," said Eric Williams' aunt, Jeanette Williams White, who is an attorney. "The officer needs to be charged with first-degree murder." Williams, who was homeless and had mental problems, according to family members, was partially naked when Trooper Jay Morningstar shot and killed him at 12:30 a.m. Thursday in front of the Detroiter Bar near Greektown. Williams was unarmed, police said later. A Detroit police report says Williams was walking slowly toward two troopers who were in their car when Morningstar got out of the driver's side, removed a gun from his holster and fired once, striking Williams in the chest. Detroit police performed CPR on Williams until an EMS medic arrived and took him to Detroit Receiving Hospital, where he was dead on arrival. A Detroit police in-car videotape that captured the incident will most likely play into whether the trooper will face criminal charges in Williams' death. State police said Williams was causing a disturbance and ignored verbal commands to stop before lunging at Morningstar and his partner, Theresa Malone. [more]