Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has taken legal action to contest the dismissal of charges against three law enforcement officers implicated in the assault of a handcuffed man last year. In an appeal filed with the 10th Circuit Court in Saginaw County, Nessel is fighting to reinstate the Willful Neglect of Duty charges initially levied in August 2022 against Michigan State Police Trooper Zachary Tebedo and Saginaw Police Officers Jordan Engelhart and Dominic Vasquez, as reported by ClickOnDetroit.
Nessel's action comes after Judge Sara Spencer-Noggle of the 70th District Court in Saginaw ruled that the officers' failure to act did not amount to willful neglect. "When these officers took the victim into their custody, they assumed a duty and obligation to keep him safe from further harm, and that includes further harm perpetrated by a fellow officer,” Nessel said, according to statements obtained by Michigan Department of Attorney General. She opposes the notion that the officers were legally exempt from the obligation to step in to prevent abusive behavior by another officer.
The incident in question occurred during a March 2022 traffic stop, where Trooper Tebedo is accused of punching a handcuffed Saginaw man in the head, resulting in unconsciousness. Emergency medical services were dispatched, assessed the man, and then departed from the scene. Tebedo is alleged to have assaulted the man once more while trying to place him into a state police vehicle, with Engelhart and Vasquez present and reportedly not intervening.
In her brief opposing dismissal, Nessel argued that Trooper "Tebedo and Officers Engelhart and Vasquez had a duty based on the U.S. Constitution as well as the Michigan Constitution to protect" the handcuffed victim "from further harm while he was handcuffed and in their custody,” as mentioned on Michigan Department of Attorney General. She contends that at minimum, the circumstances and cited laws raise a question that should be resolved by a jury—specifically, whether the officers are guilty of committing the crime of Willful Neglect of Duty.
