A former Michigan police officer has been sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison for using excessive force while booking a 19-year-old suspect at a detention facility in Warren last year.
Matthew Rodriguez, 49, pleaded guilty in March to one felony count of deprivation of rights under color of law in connection with the vicious assault on June 13, 2023, which was caught on jail surveillance footage.
At the time of the incident, Officer Rodriguez was tasked with fingerprinting and photographing Jaquwan Smith, a teen with multiple felony charges who had just arrived at the Warren Police Department jail for processing, according to court records.
During the intake, Rodriguez and Smith began arguing and exchanging insults.
Following one of Smith’s remarks, Rodriguez became enraged and struck Smith repeatedly before slamming the teen’s head against the floor.
Rodriguez had gotten up from his desk to grab paperwork off of the printer as the two men jawed at each other when he suddenly punched Smith in the face. He then picked the teen up and slammed him to the ground.
Video of the attack showed Rodriguez grabbing Smith by his locs and slamming him to the floor before two fellow officers rushed in to restrain Smith. The officers pulled the teen up and Rodriguez threw him face-first into a jail cell.
Rodriguez was placed on leave and later fired after 14 years on the force.
Smith suffered bruising and lacerations to his face in the attack.
As part of his plea, Rodriguez admitted to falsifying a report about the incident, including making misleading statements and omitting key details in an effort to conceal what he had done.
Rodriguez also admitted to using “unreasonable force” against the teen and acknowledged making false statements to cover up the incident. According to his plea agreement, Smith was “not physically resisting arrest or attempting to escape.”
In a statement, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan, said Rodriguez violated his oath and deserved to be held accountable.
“This defendant swore to protect and serve his community, but instead, he abused his power by violently assaulting an arrestee,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This sentence should serve as a reminder to all law enforcement that a badge is not a license to answer verbal insults with physical violence and excessive force. The Justice Department will continue to protect the constitutional rights of all Americans and to hold law enforcement accountable when they violate federal civil rights law.”
U.S. Attorney Dawn N. Ison added: “Physical abuse of detainees is completely unacceptable and undermines public confidence in the integrity of law enforcement. My office is committed to accountability for all public servants who abuse the public trust, and today’s sentence is a powerful reflection of that commitment.”
The Detroit bureau of the FBI investigated the case with assistance from the Warren Police Department’s Internal Affairs Unit.
