Teen Killed By Officer For Flashing Headlights; Family Files Lawsuit

A Michigan court will now decide who’s to blame in the latest deadly police shooting that began with a simple traffic stop and no hint of violence.

Guilford’s family says in the lawsuit that Guilford did nothing wrong in flashing his high-beams at the officer.

The family of 17-year-old Deven Guilford filed a lawsuit this week in the death of their son, who was fatally shot by a sheriff’s deputy who stopped him for flashing his high-beam headlights. A prosecutor says Frost will not be charged.

“Can I get your driver’s license, registration, proof of insurance please”.

The officer says he pulled the teen over because the teen flashed him with his brights, though the officer says he didn’t have his brights on.

The lawsuit says Guilford asked for the officer’s badge number and questioned why he was being stopped – things within his rights to demand.

Four months ago Eaton County Prosecutor Doug Lloyd cleared Sgt. Jonathan Frost of criminal wrongdoing after he shot the unarmed Mulliken teen seven times, the Detroit Free Press reported.

“You had your brights on sir, I’m not lying to you. I didn’t want you to flash someone and have someone go off the road and crash”. The stun gun wasn’t fully effective because only one of two probes embedded into the teen, and Guilford retaliated to the shocks by getting up and pummeling the officer, according to the prosecutor.

“Do you realize that if you had complied with this traffic stop, it would have gone a whole different way for you”, Frost replies.

He refused Frost’s orders to drop the phone, and the officer kicked it from his hand.

“Out of the auto or you’re gonna get tased”, Frost says in the footage.

“This incident is a tragedy for everyone involved, certainly for the Guilford family, but also for Jon Frost and all the men and women of the Eaton County Sheriff’s Office and the entire Eaton County community”.

The teen does so, but keeps his cell phone in his hand.

The teen, who told Frost he was using his cellphone to record the interaction, said he had his license but that the deputy didn’t “have to see it”.

In the wake of the incident, Reich noted, his office has reviewed “the training provided officers in the use of the Taser, given increased emphasis to defensive tactics training, reviewed and continued training regarding the positioning of vehicles during high risk traffic stops, and reviewed and continued to emphasize training concerning officer communications with the citizens they encounter to increase the instances of voluntary cooperation following a decision to make an arrest”. A struggle ensues, during which the bodycam is knocked off. Seven shots can be heard being fired, all of which hit Guilford.

Frost later wrote in an investigative report that the teen knocked him to the snowy ground and repeatedly punched him in the head.

Body cam video after the incident captures the sergeant at the scene with injuries and blood on his face.

Back in August the Eaton County Sheriff’s Office released the results of their investigation, saying Sgt. Frost acted in compliance to regulations when he shot and killed the 17-year-old.