Detroit Police Chief, James Craig

After being sued by Black Lives Matter offshoot, Detroit Will Breathe (DWB), Detroit Police Chief James Craig stood his ground.  Now, he has launched a countersuit against DWB.  “We don’t retreat,” he told Tucker Carlson.  This summer, he stated that these criminals created “false narratives that we shot an unarmed African American man,” in order to agitate Detroiters and create division among its people and its police.  It was not true.  The victim had fired at police.  Previously, Chief Craig has stated that Black Lives Matter are comprised in large part of “Domestic terrorists” who “agitate.”

Those are bold words.

Chief Craig also has the honesty and boldness to appropriately name BLM a “Marxist” organization, which most public figures refuse to admit.  He also described how “coordinated,” “planned,” and “financed” the groups are:

According to The Intercept, here are some of the details of the countersuit:

“The city’s countersuit claims that Detroit Will Breathe activists made false statements about cops — evidence, the city says, of a “civil conspiracy” and that protesters “defamed” Detroit police (though the city clarified in a recent filing that it isn’t suing outright for defamation).”

They go on to state that:

“In one instance, the city claims that Nakia Wallace, a Detroit Will Breathe leader, “falsely characterized [Detroit police] officers” by posting on Twitter about the “murderous and brutal nature of the Detroit Police Department.”

Finally:

The countercomplaint also accuses Detroit Will Breathe of peddling a “false narrative to rile the public” about the fatal police shooting of 20-year-old Hakim Littleton in July, noting that body and dashcam footage released the day of the killing “shows the man fire a gun at an officer before police shot him…The city’s countersuit also alleges that “the protests in Detroit have repeatedly turned violent, endangering the lives of police and the public” — and because of this, Detroit Will Breathe’s demonstrations shouldn’t be considered First Amendment-protected activities.” 

This all seems pretty reasonable.  And, Detroit Police Chief James Craig seems pretty reasonable, as well.  So, what is the secret to Detroit’s success where other major cities have failed?  Why is Detroit the only city that seems to be standing their ground against the lawlessness of these groups?

Like many other cities effected by violence this year, Detroit is large and diverse.  However, despite other cities experiencing high rates of increased crime from looting, property damage, violence, and riots throughout this year, Detroit remained largely unscathed by such criminality. It is apparent that effective police leadership plays a large role in maintaining this sense of law and order and societal integrity.

Detroit Police Chief, James Craig, seems to understand his community and the needs of its people not only for compassion, but for law and order, as well.  Many other cities have released these violent criminals by the hundreds instead of prosecuting them.  This creates a lack of trust between law enforcement and the community.

As Chief Craig says “Police departments must continue to build upon the capital of trust with their communities.”

Let’s hope more cities follow Detroit’s lead and produce better outcomes for law-abiding citizens and businesses around the country.

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