Detroit — Family and friends of Melvindale Police Cpl. Mohamed Said were in tears Tuesday in Wayne Circuit Court as the trial for the man accused of killing Said went to the jury and they again watched the officer’s body camera footage from his final moments.
Wayne County Assistant Prosecutor Rana Hadied finished her closing arguments during the murder trial against Michael Lopez, 45, by showing the footage from July 2024.
The jury, Lopez and the gallery crowded with Said’s supporters watched as Said lectured Lopez for dropping a cigarette butt on the ground. The footage also showed Lopez running away from Said just before Said was about to put him down, Said using his Taser on Lopez, and then Lopez pointing his gun at Said, and the police officer staggered backward.
“We’re good, we’re good,” Said said, his hands empty as he spoke his last words before Lopez shot him. His Taser had fallen to the ground. His gun, which Lopez testified he believed was pointed at him, was still holstered on his belt.
“Killed for doing his job,” Hadied said after the video finished.
Lopez finished his testimony Tuesday morning, after he was abruptly kicked off the stand Monday during cross-examination for talking about a previous traffic stop involving Said and Lopez’s daughter, something Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Bridget Mary Hathaway had previously ruled was inadmissible at the trial.
He also mentioned a grievance his family filed against Said, which Hathaway also warned him not to mention.
Hathaway warned Lopez Tuesday morning that if he could not follow her orders, his testimony would be struck from the court record and he would not be able to use his chosen defense of self-defense. Lopez held his tongue during his testimony and was allowed to finish.
“I had to defend myself. I honestly, truly believed he was trying to kill me,” Lopez said Tuesday. “I thought (Said) had a gun in his hands. … I thought I got shot in the back (when Said tased him).”
Hadied and Lopez’s attorney, John McWilliams, gave their closing arguments, and the jury began deliberating just before noon Tuesday.
Lopez is charged with the murder of a police officer, possession of a firearm by a felon, possession of ammunition by a felon, carrying a concealed weapon, possession of methamphetamine, possession of cocaine, carrying a dangerous weapon with unlawful intent and five counts of felony firearm. The murder charge carries a penalty of life in prison.
Lopez admitted during his testimony that he was not legally allowed to possess a gun because he is a felon and that he had meth and cocaine on him at the time of his arrest.
He said he ran after he shot Said because “I thought I should get out of there before I get killed for real” by Said’s colleagues.
Hadied said Lopez had the motive to kill Said — he hated cops and did not want to go back to prison — and said he never mentioned that he shot Said in self-defense during his interview with Michigan State Police after he was arrested.
“There’s no evidence in this case to suggest that there was an honest and reasonable belief that he was in danger of being killed,” Hadied said. “Lopez, selfishly, outwardly and intendedly, decided his life was worth more than the officer’s.”
McWilliams said in Michigan, the law protects someone who harms or kills another person if they have a reasonable fear that their life is in danger. He said the case against Lopez relies solely on “that moment of truth, that split-second decision, his fear and the immediate danger and the need for immediate action.”
“He told you what he did, he told you why, and that is the key to this case,” McWilliams said. “The judge will tell you that even if he was wrong in his perception of the danger. … He still maintains that innocence, and he had the right to do what he did.”
kberg@detroitnews.com
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Jury deciding if man murdered Melvindale cop or killed in self-defense
Reporting by Kara Berg, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
