Legal Tensions Emerge as Human Rights Commission Probes Police Conduct

The East Lansing Human Rights Commission hit a barrier in an investigation of alleged police brutality, as a fee for records the commission says are essential to the investigation will not be waived by the city. 

Mayor Erik Altmann rejected an appeal from the  commission to waive a nearly $900 fee to obtain body camera footage, arrest records and police reports related to two officers across several weekends last fall. 

Altmann offered Commissioner Joshua Hewitt – who filed the FOIA request – the option to review certain documents at the police department. To reduce cost, Altmann suggested Hewitt limit the number of materials requested, but Hewitt told East Lansing Info in a text message that he does not plan to accept the offer. 

Sharing camera footage has also been an issue with the city’s Police Oversight Commission, as members have balked at proposed arrangements to view camera footage in scheduled meetings with police. Oversight commission members, volunteers who previously received footage to watch at home, have said it takes hours to thoroughly dissect footage and the work is typically done over several days. 

The Human Rights Commission is investigating an incident from August 2025, where two Black men were pepper sprayed by an ELPD officer.

The incident – and a misleading press release the police department issued about it – have been widely discussed over the last several months, but city leaders have said very little.

The commission is investigating ELPD officer Andrew Lyon for deploying the pepper spray and Jacey Kingsbury for her demeanor during an arrest related to the incident. Charges against both men pepper-sprayed have been dropped, and WLNS reported earlier this week that Lyon has resigned from the police department. 

Commissioners sought the records to see if officers displayed a pattern of bias in the weeks surrounding the pepper-spray incident.

Because the incident is subject to lawsuits filed in federal court, city attorneys urged the commission to not pursue investigations into the complaints when they were received in November.  A special meeting was called Monday for the city attorneys and commissioners to discuss the investigation in a closed-door meeting.

However, there was silence in the Hannah Community Center meeting room when Commission Chair Julia Walters asked three times if there was a motion to move into a closed session, making it clear that no one on the commission wanted to hold a private discussion about the investigation. 

“I am dedicated to transparency and the belief that anything that a public body does, the public deserves to know… I think that anything that could be told to us, should be told to any other citizen,” Commissioner Matthew Boughton said. 

Commissioner Karen Hoene agreed with Boughton and added, “We welcome any information you want to give us in a public setting … I see no reason to move into a closed-session.”

City Attorney Steven Joppich, City Labor Attorney Gouri Sashital, and City Manager Robert Belleman left the room after the commissioners’ comments, and the discussion pivoted to one about the possibility of the commission obtaining pro bono legal assistance. 

The complaints filed regarding the pepper-spray incident raised a dilemma for the commission. The city attorneys are tasked with protecting the city’s interests and advising the commission. If the commission is investigating a department in the city, how can the city’s attorneys advise the commission and provide legal protection for the city? 

Commissioners said having independent legal counsel would be helpful for two primary reasons: assistance in investigations and for consultation on developing new internal procedures. 

The commission would still use the city attorney for complaints where it is not investigating a city department. For cases where it is investigating a city department, commissioners believe using the city attorney carries a conflict of interest. 

“It’s certainly very possible that at some point another complaint could come in front of us that involves a city department,” Hoene said. “It will definitely be a really good [thing] to have clear guidance, and this case has really shown some of the deficits in our policy right now and the model that’s being used.”

Update: A paragraph was added to this story to clarify why the Human Rights Commission sought records.