Record: Death of teenager hit by patrol car an ‘accident’

WYOMING, Mich. (WOOD) — The death certificate for 17-year-old Riley Doggett, who was struck by a sheriff’s patrol car while fleeing police, lists the cause of death as “accident.”

Doggett died on May 9 at Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital, more than a month after he was struck by a vehicle driven by a Kent County sheriff’s deputy.

According to the death certificate, he suffered a traumatic brain injury or traumatic brain injury.

Kent County Coroner Dr. Stephen Cohle, who performed the autopsy, said it is common practice to list the manner of death in cars as accidents, although he said a police investigation may lead him to change that. He said it was a question of intent, and he had seen no evidence to suggest the deputy intended to hit Doggett. If he had intended to hit him, he would have classified the manner of death as homicide, according to Cohle.

He compared it to a hunter firing a shot at movement in the forest and accidentally hitting another hunter. This would also be considered an accident because there was no intent.

He said Doggett suffered a fractured skull and a broken hip.

Doggett family attorney Ven Johnson questioned how the coroner reached that conclusion.

Cohle said he based his determination on reports from his medical examiner, who spoke with police. He said he hadn’t seen any videos.

“What do you expect from the police?” said attorney Johnson. “Their determination has nothing to do with anything in court. None of it is binding on a jury.”

State police investigated the death and turned the case over to Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker, who will decide whether to file criminal charges against the deputy. Becker said Tuesday he was “working on it” but declined to say when he expected to make a decision.

Doggett had fled from the police in a stolen Range Rover on April 8th. His lawyer said he was a passenger.

According to reports, the Kent County officer who struck Doggett with his patrol car had first spotted the Range Rover minutes earlier at US-131 and 44th Street in Wyoming.

That was less than an hour after the same vehicle and a stolen Nissan were pursued by Dutch police – a pursuit that reached 120 mph and ended on I-196 near the Kent-Ottawa route.

The chase in Kent County, which reached speeds of up to 80 miles per hour, ended when Doggett and his alleged accomplice jumped out of the Range Rover crashed into parked cars at 32nd Street and South Division Avenue.

Dogget was running away when the deputy hit him in his cruiser. There was no indication that Doggett was armed.

The Kent County Sheriff’s Office said Doggett was “accidentally struck” and that this was “a direct result of the inherent risk associated with the serious criminal activity in which Riley was involved in the weeks and months prior to this incident.”

The police arrested the 17-year-old driver. As a teenager, he is accused of fleeing from a police officer, receiving and hiding the stolen Range Rover and resisting the police.

Ven Johnson, the attorney for Doggett’s family, has argued that the death was the result of misuse of deadly force. He has criticized the Kent County Sheriff’s Department for refusing to release dashboard cam videos.

A memorial service for Doggett will be held Friday at 5 p.m Stroo Funeral Home on 68th Street SE in Gaines Township. Visitation precedes the service and begins at 3 p.m

The death of a 25 year old Samuel Sterlingwho was hit by a state police sergeant’s car while fleeing police on April 17thwas too was listed as an accident on his death certificate. Sterling, who was wanted on a warrant for a probation violation, died hours after the crash. State police released dash and body cam videos which show the chase and her reaction after Sterling is hit.

The sergeant has said through his lawyer that he “did not intend to intentionally harm Mr. Sterling” and that he was “heartbroken” by the death.

The investigation into this death is still pending. The state police sergeant has been placed on unpaid leave and the governor has called for his firing if he is charged with a crime.