No charges filed against Washtenaw County deputies who shot, killed man in Ypsilanti

No charges will be filed against three Washtenaw County Sheriff's deputies who shot and killed a man following a chase through Ypsilanti in early January.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel concluded that the deputies acted in self-defense, even though those actions were based on information they later learned to be false.

A civil suit now seeks to hold deputies accountable for unlawful use of deadly force, failure to intervene, and negligence in the shooting death of John Jenuwine.

They just got it wrong. They got the law wrong, and they got the facts wrong," said attorney Todd Flood with Flood Law.

While Flood disagrees with Nessel's decision to not charge the officers who shot and killed Jenuwine, he says that ruling won't impact the civil case filed on behalf of Jenuwine's family.

"They knew they had the information wrong from jump street. Not only did they have the wrong person, chased the wrong person, they knew this ahead of time," he said.

"They reached this conclusion without being in possession of the correct facts, so it's all the more difficult to swallow," said attorney Maura Battersby with Flood Law.

Attorneys argue the deputies put themselves in greater danger after the chase ended, with Jenuwine's van overturned. 

Initial reports indicated the driver had a gun, which deputies could be heard talking about in footage moments before firing more than a dozen rounds at the vehicle. However, Washtenaw County Sheriff Alyshia Dyer revealed that there was no weapon in the vehicle.

"After they have fired these 30 rounds into Jon's vehicle, says now we should treat this as a barricaded gunman. It's what they were supposed to do the minute his vehicle was disabled on its side," Battersby said.

Flood says body camera footage attached to the complaint shows deputies ignoring Jenuwine's cries for help following the shooting.

"They told him to call 9-1-1 if he needed medical attention," he said. "He's crying, 'Help me, help me,' as he's bleeding out to death."

CBS News Detroit reached out to the Washtenaw County Sheriff's Office. Dyer responded with the following statement:

"The Attorney General's Office has concluded its review of the death of John Jenuwine and determined that criminal charges will not be brought against the four deputies involved. We respect the Attorney General's role in independently reviewing this tragic matter. The next step is for the Sheriff's Office to perform an administrative review that will evaluate the incident under our departmental policies and standards. We will not prejudge the outcome of that process. 

"The Attorney General's decision does not diminish the loss of Mr. Jenuwine's life or the grief of his family. We also recognize the profound impact that this incident has had on our community and the importance of addressing matters like this with care and respect. 

The Sheriff's Office remains committed to accountability, public safety, and earning the trust of the community we serve. As civil litigation remains pending, we will address specific facts through the appropriate legal process. Questions about the criminal investigation should be directed to the Attorney General's Office and questions about the civil litigation should be directed to the County's Corporation Counsel."