East Lansing Police Chief Under Fire After “Racist” Remarks, Misleading Arrest Narrative

Scrutiny of East Lansing Police Chief Jen Brown is intensifying. 

Comments Brown made in a recent news interview have been called racist at city commission meetings. At the yesterday’s City Council meeting, that criticism came from the city’s highest ranks. 

“Words do matter,“ City Manager Robert Belleman said. “The comment made by Police Chief Brown was offensive and racist.” 

The meeting featured calls for Brown to be removed or resign, as community members also rendered harsh condemnation of the city and ELPD for painting a young man who tried to break up an altercation downtown as a perpetrator of violence. 

“You called my son a criminal when he has not even had his day in court.” Community members say new footage contradicts police narrative. 

Hours before the meeting started, WLNS released new footage of ELPD officers deploying pepper spray during MSU’s welcome weekend. The footage shows an incident the city and ELPD singled out in a press release addressing violence downtown the weekend of Aug. 23-24. 

The footage shows the actions of 21-year-old Lonnie Smith, who was one of two men named in the press release sent by the city more than a month after the incident. The release said Smith was arrested for engaging in a “fight or brawl” in a public space, providing links to body camera footage from the incident and alerting the public to widespread violence downtown. 

While the previously released body camera footage is shaky and often obstructed, the overhead camera angle from Dave’s Hot Chicken released to WLNS provides a clearer view of the incident. The footage shows Smith restraining his friend, 22-year-old Mason Smith, Smith’s lawyer told WLNS. Woods was the other person named in the press release. 

Smith’s mother, along with other speakers at the council meeting, said the WLNS footage proves Smith was acting as a peacekeeper, and ELPD and the city painted an unfair picture of him in the release. They also said some details in the release, like saying that Smith was intoxicated, are incorrect. Speakers also accused the city and ELPD of racial bias against Smith and Woods, who are Black. 

“You released his full name to the press, you shared the police body-cam footage prior to even his attorney viewing it,” Smith’s mother Nadia Sellers said during public comment of the meeting. 

“[The footage] clearly shows your officers committing a crime against my son, deliberately trying to blind him,” Sellers continued. “Then you tell the press my son was a drunk, when he blew sober. You called my son a criminal, when he has not even had his day in court. He’d never been arrested, he’s never been suspended from school, he’s never had a fight in his life.”

In the released footage from the Dave’s Hot Chicken entrance, there is a crowd of individuals outside the restaurant. Some individuals are seen pushing and exchanging words. 

After the pushing had started, Smith is seen grabbing Woods from behind, appearing to restrain him. Smith then stands between Woods and a man he is exchanging words with before ELPD officers rush into the crowd and quickly deploy pepper spray on Woods, Smith and at least one other person. Woods and Smith are then arrested, the city’s press release states.

“The chief has allegedly had this footage all along and yet chose only to release to the public, via press release, the body-worn camera footage that fit her narrative,” Police Oversight Commission Vice Chair Kath Edsall said.

Harold Pope, president of the Lansing NAACP branch, said he was “disgusted but not surprised” by the new footage. 

“A young man, peacefully trying to avoid a situation, was assaulted,” Pope said. “The officer that engaged with the spray did not assess the situation before deploying the spray. Instead, he just walked up and sprayed the young man, directly in his eyes at what should be an unlawful distance… That execution is not taught in the academy.”

“Racist” comment made by police chief Jen Brown continues to draw fire. 

Along with the city manager, members of City Council and residents condemned a statement Brown made last week in an interview with WLNS. 

“We have a very transient population, and over the last month, starting with Welcome Weekend, we have had a disproportionate number of minorities come into the community and commit crimes, and as police officers we are simply responding to those crimes,” Brown told WLNS.

After he called Brown’s comment “offensive and racist,” Belleman said he believes Brown is willing to learn. Constant turnover at the top of ELPD’s ranks is keeping the department from making needed changes, he added.

“And so I stand behind [Chief] Jen [Brown], even though the error was made,” Belleman said. “To continue to grow and to make the necessary changes in our police department.”

Brown’s usage of the term “minorities” has been criticized, and community members and city commissioners have said her statement makes East Lansing seem unwelcoming to people of color. Brown later apologized for her comments, but the apology has been characterized as insincere. 

“Run it through Google Gemini and ask if it’s a good apology,” Councilmember Dana Watson said at last night’s meeting. 

“Certainly, our expectation is there is a more careful way of talking as a chief of police,” Councilmember Mark Meadows said. 

Rebecca Kasen, executive director of the Women’s Center of Greater Lansing, read from a press release put out by the Women’s Center that calls for Brown’s resignation. 

Ernest Conerly, chair of the oversight commission, said Belleman selected Brown over candidates who were more qualified when she was named chief earlier this year. 

“I have no trust in the chief’s leadership, and I have no trust in the city manager’s ability, or willingness, to hold his direct report accountable,” Conerly said. 

Brookover calls for city to look to “outside sources” to improve policing. 

Mayor George Brookover, who rarely speaks during the council communications portion of meetings, read a prepared statement at last night’s meeting. 

In his statement, Brookover said the city will “continue to support equal justice under the law.” Brookover called on the city manager to address issues in East Lansing policing. 

“In view of recent events, I call on our city manager and city attorney to undertake immediately a complete review of our police and personnel policies and report back to council with recommendations as to how the city can best utilize outside resources, such as the MSU School of Criminal Justice, to ensure our continuing progress towards effective and just law enforcement,” Brookover said.

Belleman thanked Brookover for his request. 

As East Lansing grapples with policing, the city’s police oversight commission says ELPD is continuing to change the rules. 

The controversy around Brown and ELPD occurs as the city prepares to make major changes to declaw its police oversight commission later this month. 

The changes, which city officials have said are necessary under a new bargaining agreement with a police union, have been in place since the bargaining agreement was reached in the spring and could be enshrined in the ordinance governing the oversight committee at a vote scheduled for Oct. 21. Oversight commissioners say the new rules go beyond what is required in the bargaining agreement. 

Under the new rules, the oversight commission receives information about complaints on a delayed timeline, can say less publicly and officers’ names have been kept out of reports given to the oversight commission. 

During public comment of the meeting and in a follow up conversation, Police Oversight Commissioner Chris Root said the city’s labor attorney and ELPD are still moving the goal posts. 

For more than three years after the commission first met in late 2021, ELPD provided reports that described incidents where officers used force. After the bargaining agreement was reached, the reports no longer included officers’ names. 

At the commission’s Oct. 1 meeting, Root said, the commission was given the August report, which suddenly included officers’ names again. However, Brown sent an email to commissioners telling them the report is now confidential because it includes officers’ names. 

Root shared an email chain capturing commissioners’ confusion about the new report containing names. In the chain, Edsall asks Brown if she’s aware the new report has names, saying it’s hard for commissioners to keep up with procedures if they are constantly changing. 

“Yes, I am aware the reports have names,” Brown replied. “As a reminder, the ordinance does not allow this report to be made public. I am hopeful that a new ordinance will allow for consistent, clear procedures.”

This is the first time the report, which the commission receives monthly, has been made confidential. Root pointed out that the August report captures the controversial welcome weekend incidents. 

“It struck me as not by accident that this change in what needs to happen with these reports occurs regarding the August report,” Root said.