Michigan attorney general probing death of Black man hit by unmarked police car: bodycam video

KENTWOOD, Mich. -- The family of a Black man who was killed after he was hit by an unmarked police car in Michigan spoke out on Saturday after body camera footage of the incident was released by investigators, ABC News reported.

Michigan State Police said it handed over its investigative report and all evidence to the state attorney general's office concerning the April 17 death of Samuel Sterling, who was being pursued by officers in Kentwood for outstanding warrants.

Sterling, 25, allegedly fled when officers approached him at a gas station and was hit by an unmarked Michigan State Police car after officers converged on him at a parking lot of a nearby Burger King, police claim. He died later in the day at the hospital.

The body camera footage released Friday showed officers rushing to Sterling on the ground after he was hit moaning in pain and claiming he did not have a gun. The unmarked police vehicle is seen up on a curb next to the restaurant in front of Sterling.

Attorney Ven Johnson, an attorney representing Sterling's family, said in a statement to ABC News that they were "stunned and appalled to see the MSP trooper deliberately drive over a curb - onto a sidewalk - and violently take Samuel's life by striking him with an unmarked police car."

"No one person should be able to appoint themselves as judge, jury and executioner, yet deaths from police brutality and excessive force continue to occur too often," Johnson added.

Officers are seen putting handcuffs on Sterling and telling firefighters who responded to the scene to keep the cuffs on.

The footage released Friday came from three agencies who were part of the fugitive task force -- Michigan State Police, Grand Rapids Police Department and Wyoming Police Department -- and included footage from four sources, three officers' body camera footage and one dash camera from a police vehicle, Michigan State Police said.

"I assure the Sterling and Cage families and the communities we serve that we will continue to be transparent in this investigation and will fully cooperate with the Michigan Department of Attorney General as they begin their review," MSP director Col. James F. Grady II, who met with the family Friday, said in a statement.

The state police trooper who was driving the vehicle that hit Sterling was not wearing a body camera and his vehicle did not have a dash camera "due to his assignment on a federal task force," Michigan State Police said in a statement.

The state police launched an investigation into the incident and suspended the trooper -- whose identity has not been revealed because of the probe -- without pay.

Marc E. Curtis, the attorney representing the trooper, told ABC News in a statement that his client is cooperating with the investigation.

"We would like to express to the family and community that we know you are grieving the death of Mr. Sterling. The Trooper involved is heartbroken at the loss of Mr. Sterling's life and wants the family to know that he had no intention of purposely harming Mr. Sterling," Curtis said in a statement.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel will review the police report and evidence and decide if any charges are warranted.

"My public integrity unit has investigated dozens of police-involved incidents and is dedicated to providing a thorough and just review and resolution in each one," Nessel said in a statement last month.Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said in a statement Friday that Sterling's death was "unacceptable" and called for the termination of the officer if charges are issued.

"I have full faith that her office will work quickly to arrive at a fair and just decision as to whether criminal charges are appropriate," the governor said of Nessel.

ABC News' Sabina Ghebremedhin contributed to this report.