Ex-Warren cop 'negligent' in deadly crash; defense says drunk driver to blame

Closing arguments were heard in the case of an ex-Warren police officer charged with manslaughter in crash that killed two men.James Burke was driving the cruiser that crashed into a Dodge Durango, killing both Cedric Hayden Jr. and Dejuan Pettis, on Schoenherr, in September, 2024.Burke was traveling at more than 100 miles per hour without lights or siren, and when hitting the brakes, the crash occurred at 94 miles per hour."He chose to disregard the law and endangered life," said Assistant Prosecutor Cory Newman.Defense attorney Marc Curtis said that because Hayden was drunk and making an illegal turn at the time, was to blame.Newman said the evidence shows the September, 2024 crash, which was speeding with lights and sirens off was not an accident — but a crash. Although it wasn't intentional, he says it was preventable."The defendant in this case, you heard over the course of two minutes and 41 seconds, traveled 2.3 miles in distance. At speeds of over 100 miles per hour. When you look at the evidence in this case and look at accident versus crash, no one's going to stand up here and tell you that this was intended."Burke and his partner were responding to assist looking for an "armed robbery ATM crew" when they received a Flock Safety camera hit matching the description of a stolen Dodge Durango."Just using common sense. Flying around the city looking for a stolen vehicle in light of the fact that the policies telling you that you shouldn't even respond to a flock hit with anything other than moderate speed unless there are some significant other factors," said Newman.The prosecutor then cited police guidelines for the response, that it exempts officers from using a siren but it "does not exempt them from using lights."Hayden was found to have been driving drunk and was making an improper turn, about three seconds prior to the crash."Burke was still 500 feet away when Hayden began to make the turn," Newman said. "He's traveling at an incredible speed, that no one would expect. The speed, along with the choice to not turn on any lights, makes this gross negligence. It makes this manslaughter."Related: Ex-partner of former Warren cop charged in fatal crash says he'd ride again with him 'Today'Newman argued Hayden's driving while under the influence was not a factor in the crash – in stark opposition to Curtis' defense."The defense wanted to talk about, obviously, the intoxication level of Cedric Hayden and the evidence (is) they did send the blood for a lab test, and it came back with a level of intoxication," he said. "Mr. Hayden is not on trial, officer Burke is."The defense argued that the ATM robbery suspects were involved in armed robberies, considered a violent crime.Curtis said the fact that Heyden was driving drunk played a major role in the crash — using no turn signal before and during a left-hand turn, was gross negligence."How much alcohol are we drinking to have a tolerance that you're okay to operate a vehicle at a .198?," he said. "Well, we do know you have to drink at least 7 to 8 drinks simultaneously at once to get to that level, or you have to spread it out over hours in order to get to that level."Both sides used the video clip from a police body camera in the wake of the crash. An officer is talking to Burke who can be seen saying that "they turned in front of me" and that he was "going too fast."More: Family decries charges against Warren police officer as preferential treatmentAn accident reconstructionist earlier testified that the turn was illegal because it was made too early, causing the Dodge Durango to cross into potential oncoming traffic."This is an unexpected event. This is something that an officer does not anticipate, can not anticipate a drunk driver at a .198 turning in front of them," Curtis said. "That's an unexpected event. That is not something that Officer Burke was expecting was going to happen."Curtis addressed the split-second decisions that officers have to make, adding that they are not robots."We then ask him to go put his life on the line for us. Officer Burke did that. Officer Burke was doing what he needed to do," he said. " He was going after an armed robbery suspects, with weapons in the car."Curtis said that the actual person breaking the law was Hayden."Who is breaking the law on the road at 5 a.m.? I'd argue to you, it's the person that's driving a vehicle suspended 0.198 blood alcohol level, making an illegal, improper turn with no blinker in front of an officer that's attempting to do his job," Curtis said. "That is a superseding, intervening cause of this accident."Mr. Hayden. He ignored the law. He ignored the drunk driving laws. He ignored the public safety for everyone on the road, not officer Burke. He is the cause of this accident."The jury received instructions after closing arguments and will now deliberate on the case.