HOPE TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD) — The taking pictures loss of life of a U.S. Military veteran by a Barry County sheriff’s deputy in October has led to 2 totally totally different variations of the occasions main as much as it.
Barry County sheriff’s deputies say the person was shot throughout a battle over his gun. The prosecutor on Tuesday dominated the taking pictures justified.
A photograph of Jeremiah Johnson from the U.S. Military.
The widow of 37-year-old Jeremiah Johnson, who mentioned she witnessed it, mentioned the taking pictures was unprovoked and there was no battle.
Widow: Husband killed by Barry County deputy didn’t should die
The issue is, the Barry County Sheriff’s Division would not have body-worn cameras that would assist settle the dispute.
The widow, Siphiwe Johnson, walked Goal 8 via what she mentioned she witnessed that evening. She mentioned her husband had a gun however denies that he threatened deputies.
Siphiwe Johnson mentioned she recorded audio on her cellular phone moments after the taking pictures.
“Oh, my God,” she may be heard screaming.
“Stay right there,” a deputy responds.
“I’m a nurse, I’m a nurse,” she yells. “He doesn’t look good.”
With out physique cameras, it was the one recording that captured any a part of the occasions that evening.
“That’s sad because this prosecutor even mentioned, ‘Well, there wasn’t any bodycams, so it’s your word against theirs.’ I was there. How did I cook up this story?”
Widow: Husband killed by Barry County deputy didn’t should die
Siphiwe Johnson had known as 911 on Oct. 28 as a result of her husband, who she mentioned suffered from PTSD, had threatened her at their house in Hope Township. She advised 911 he had set issues on hearth in the home and was holding a gun to her head.
“I know I was in danger, I called the cops for that reason. It’s how they responded,” she mentioned.
She mentioned she was on her mattress shortly after the 911 name, along with her husband standing subsequent to the mattress, yelling and holding a gun at his aspect, when deputies rushed into the bed room.
Siphiwe Johnson describes the lethal taking pictures of her husband, Jeremiah Johnson, by a Barry County sheriff’s deputy. (Feb. 12, 2025)
She says there was no battle over the weapon.
“They pushed the door, the one in front said, ‘Get down,’ and the other one who shot said, ‘Gun’ and started shooting. Startled us. Before we could even figure out what was going on, he had shot already. I can see why my husband could only turn just his head. He didn’t even turn his whole body.”
The prosecutor mentioned he was shot 5 instances within the again and aspect.
The widow mentioned she was stunned to be taught the deputies did not have physique cameras.
“They need bodycams in this county because they’re going to make stories up like this, cooking up stories like this and get away with stuff. It’s not right,” she mentioned.
Some departments fall behind as police bodycam use will increase
Barry County Prosecutor Julie Nakfoor Pratt mentioned in a press launch that the 2 deputies rushed into the room as a result of they heard yelling and feared for the lady’s life.
She mentioned that Jeremiah Johnson drew his gun once they entered the bed room and that one of many deputies tried to disarm him.
“At one point, the deputy observed that the muzzle of Johnson’s gun was moving towards the direction of the deputy who was trying to disarm him,” the prosecutor wrote. “The muzzle was pointing within the route of the deputy’s chest and head and he feared for the deputy’s life so he shot Johnson.
“It is my opinion that at the time Jeremiah Johnson was shot and killed by a Barry County deputy, the deputy honestly and reasonably believed that the use of deadly force was necessary to prevent the imminent death or imminent great bodily harm to his fellow officer, Johnson’s wife, Siphiwe and also himself. This was a justifiable homicide.”
The prosecutor mentioned she has different proof to help the deputies’ accounts, together with ballistics. She refused an interview with Information 8 and hasn’t launched her full report.
Nevertheless, in a textual content trade, the prosecutor mentioned physique cameras are “helpful in many circumstances to both sides.”
The Barry County Sheriff’s Division is among the many few police businesses in West Michigan with out body-worn cameras or sprint cams.
The Ottawa County Sheriff’s Division final yr agreed to spend $4.6 million over 5 years for physique cameras. Allegan, Kent and Muskegon deputies put on them.
The four-officer Barry Township Police Division has had physique cameras for greater than a decade.
“It’s going to show how the officer responds, the professionalism that the officer has, when he or she addresses the caller and it shows exactly what happens, it shows their actions, what was said, what was done,” Barry Township Police Chief Jenny Johnson mentioned.
“The bodycam does not lie,” she mentioned.
Barry County Sheriff Dar Leaf wasn’t out there for an interview, however in a textual content mentioned he has began speaking with three firms that present physique cameras and sprint cams, together with taser cameras and digital actuality gadgets for coaching. He did not present a timeline.
Barry County Commissioner Jon Smelker advised Goal 8 that Leaf advised him Tuesday, the identical day because the prosecutor’s ruling, that he was wanting into physique cameras. He mentioned Leaf was on the lookout for grants to assist pay for them.
“That would be great,” Jeremiah Johnson’s widow mentioned. “That would save a life out there, that would save people like me from this grief, because I feel like I’m not even being heard.”
