LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) — The City of East Lansing has responded to two formal complaints stemming from an incident where two Black men who were pepper sprayed and arrested by East Lansing police during MSU Welcome Week.
Woods and Lonnie Smith filed federal lawsuits naming East Lansing, Chief of Police Jennifer Brown and ELPD officer Andrew Lyon as defendants. They are accusing them of false arrest, excessive force and having a “policy that treats minorities differently.”
On the second page of the response, filed Friday, the city notably denied an allegation that Police Chief Jennifer Brown said a “disproportionate number of minorities” came to East Lansing to “commit crimes,” saying they were taken out of context. Brown’s comments were made in an interview with 6 News…