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 A jury failed to reach a verdict last year for Officer Joseph
Weekley, who faces involuntary manslaughter charges in the 2010
death of Aiyana Stanley-Jones, who was sleeping on a couch when
officers stormed her home in search of a murder suspect, court
documents said.
Weekley's gun fired, and a bullet struck Aiyana in the head. The
shooting has stirred tension in Detroit, heightening ongoing
concerns about police brutality and use of excessive force.
The trial begins with heightened national scrutiny on police conduct
after a white officer in Ferguson, Missouri, fatally shot an unarmed
black teenager on Aug. 9, sparking a wave of protests.
After more than a decade of monitoring excessive force issues, the
Detroit Police Department began transitioning out of federal
oversight last month.
Defense attorneys have maintained that Weekley didn't intentionally
shoot the girl, while prosecutors have argued that he was negligent.
A camera crew, reportedly filming footage for a reality show, was
also present during the raid.
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Weekley testified in court last year that Aiyana's grandmother,
Mertilla Jones, grabbed the gun, causing it to fire accidentally,
according to local media accounts. Jones testified that she was
nowhere near Weekley when officers entered the home.
During the raid, police were seeking the killer of a teenage boy,
Je'Rean Blake, local media accounts said. Chauncey Owens was found
hiding in Aiyana's building and was sentenced to life in prison in
March.
(Reporting by Aaron Foley; Editing by Brendan O'Brien, Mary
Wisniewski and Sandra Maler)
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