Family seeks more charges in teen son's death • Lathrup council member eavesdrops • Oxford's new security
TUESDAY NEWS HIT - Three weeks ago a 16-year-old boy was charged with shooting and killing a 14-year-old boy. The victim's family says there were young accomplices -- and they want to see those kids punished for the deadly crime too.
The accused teen gunman Ryan McLeod was in court Monday. The family of 14-year-old Joseph Nankervis says McLeod should not have been there alone — they are convinced the others also played a role in the shooting.
"I just want to grieve in peace and I want everybody involved accounted for their actions," said Amber Nankervis
Nankervis says not all the wheels of justice have started turning in the murder case of her brother, Joseph -- murdered in southwest Detroit.
"He just had the biggest smile, he was the baby of our family," she said. "He was like our baby as well, and they took him from us.
Police say four people - an 18-year-old and three minors - drove to Joseph’s house on Homer and Mullane, where one of them shot and killed him.
The dispute reportedly stemmed from a cell phone stolen from Joseph’s brother Justin. Police quickly arrested four suspects after the shooting, but only one, McLeod, was charged.
Murder suspect Ryan McLeod
"All we wanted to do was lay my baby brother to rest, and you know, we can’t even do that. Because we know there’s more people that were in that car, and they're joking about my brother’s death," Amber said.
Amber showed FOX 2 screenshots of a pair of social media posts in which one of the four suspects reportedly stated "We’re catching homicides before 21. We’re like slaughter gang."
"There was another one that said, 'You’re mad because we popped your boy, you’re going to be next,'"
Amber is convinced that was a threat directed at Joseph’s friends and his older brother Justin.
Police say they’re still investigating the shooting and if more evidence comes to light, more charges will be filed. For the Nankervis family, that cannot happen soon enough.
"My son is not a statistic, that is my son," said Lawrence, his father. "And he deserves the justice that he has due to him."
McLeod is scheduled to be back in court in a couple of weeks. Right now he’s being held in a youth home but he has been charged as an adult with first-degree murder.
Lathrup Village councilmember caught on camera eavesdropping on outdoor meeting
A Lathrup Village city council member is in hot water. A group of residents want her recalled and claims she spied on them. It started when a group of Lathrup Village residents gathered together in a backyard to discuss a certain council member - and ended with a call to the police after the council member appeared in the backyard.
Some residents believe the council member was listening over the fence. According to Lauren Bera, who hosted a group of people in her backyard, they were meeting to discuss a recall election. But as the meeting was nearing the end, they found concil member Karen Miller eavesdropping.
"All of the sudden someone called out, 'I see you spying on us and council member Miller came out from behind my neighbor’s bushes filming my guests and demanding their names," Bera said. Then things got heated.
Concerns over the incident were brought to a council meeting on Monday. Miller said she can't comment on the incident due to this being an ongoing investigation with police, but she did release a statement. "I have the honor of serving the Lathrup Village and Southfield communities for more than 30 years. I'm committed to this community and representing its residents, especially those who feel their voices have not been heard in recent years. To do that, well, I ask tough questions and demand accountability and I will not stop.
Read more about the clash between activists here.
Oxford unveils new security measures ahead of school year
When Oxford district students return to school for the upcoming year, one of the first changes they'll see are the biometric scanners awaiting them at all three entrances of the high school. It's part of a beefed up security system that's being added to the high school in response to November shooting that left four students dead.
The scanners are capable of detecting weapons inside a student's backpack. It's one of a number of new additions that were unveiled during a Monday town hall with parents in Oxford. A dog that specializes in detecting weapons and a private security company that supplies armed personnel will also be at the building.
The district previously announced using cameras that are enabled by an artificial intelligence-based gun detection system that can report the of presence of a firearm quickly.
The 90-minute meeting is one of many the district has held with students and parents in preparation for the upcoming school year. Previous meetings have involved tense meetings between board members of the district that parents have accused of not being transparent enough. The new equipment is expected to be installed this week and students return to class on Aug. 25.
Read more Oxford school coverage here.
Man carjacked and robbed after agreeing to meet up with woman
A man planning to meet up with two women he had just met at an after hours club in Detroit last month was instead carjacked. Police said the two women and a man set up the victim on July 29. "He thought he was going for a hook-up, and he got hooked up," said Detroit Police Capt. Vernal Newson.
The 31-year-old victim met the women at VIP Club on James Couzens on the city's west side. "They became acquainted and decided when the establishment closed that they would meet up again," Newson said. "At 5:51 in the morning I want to be in the bed, certainly not trying to meet up with someone, or as they say get a hook-up."
The victim followed the women and man to the 15300 block of Stansbury, where they robbed him at gunpoint and took his midnight blue 2014 Chrysler 300. "Took all of his cell phones, his money -- $1,200 in cash, took his car and fled," Newson said. During the crime, the man also shot a gun.
"In this instance he fired a shot in the air. The next instance it might be at the victim," he said. Carjackings in the city are up 40%. This has the police department's Organized Crimes Unit going after these criminals hard. "If we get a lead of a call of a carjacking at 4 a.m., we are all going out. I'll go myself," Newson said. Anyone with information is asked to call the Commercial Auto Theft Unit at 313-596-2555.
Detroit police officer pleads no contest to fatal crash
A Detroit police officer pleaded no contest Monday in a high-speech crash that killed a lawyer in 2021. The Wayne County prosecutor agreed to drop an involuntary manslaughter charge against Teaira Funderburg in exchange for a no-contest plea to willful neglect of duty.
Funderburg faces a year of probation and 100 hours of community service, the prosecutor’s office said. She will also give up her police certification. Investigators said Funderburg disregarded a red light while rushing to help another officer when her patrol SUV smashed into a car driven by Cliff Woodards in February 2021.
Woodards was a defense attorney who regularly had cases in Wayne County courts. "There’s no winner here," said Arnold Reed, an attorney for his family. "Obviously we can’t bring Cliff back, but she will never wear a uniform for the rest of her life. This comes at a great price for her."
Reed is suing the city over the fatal crash.
Read a previous story on the lawyer and his rival attorney here.
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Daily Forecast
It's going to be sunny start to Tuesday but there are scattered showers potentially this afternoon.
What else we're watching
- A fatal accident involving a postal truck and a passenger car was reported on Detroit's east side on Chalmers Tuesday morning. Detroit police say the crash also involves a high speed chase with armed suspects.
- Fighter jets from the 180th Fighter Wing will be testing the Aerospace Control Alert system between 8 a.m. and 12 p.m. Tuesday. Those living in southern Wayne County and Monroe County may hear some noise from the training.
- Absenteeism continues to plague Detroit schools. A citywide effort to combat the problem will be announced Tuesday during a morning press conference. Nonprofits and churches are expected to partner their efforts.
- Today is the 35th anniversary of Flight 255's crash moments after taking off from Detroit Metro airport. The plane was headed for Phoenix when its left wing clipped a light pole and the hull sheared off the roof of a rental car building. It killed 154 people.
- Detroit police's interim chief investigator of complaints against police hopes to resolve a backlog of filings against officers by the end of the year. Some 800 complaints have been filed against the department's officers - an increase that the interim board secretary says is a misuse of the system by citizens.
7-Eleven's 'Bring Your Own Cup Day' returns for 2nd time this year for Slurpee fans
7-Eleven is reviving its Bring Your Own Cup Day for a second time this year.
The day is currently set for Saturday, Aug. 27, and comes three months after the convenience store chain reestablished the day in Canada, which had gone on a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
August’s Bring Your Own Cup Day in the U.S. also follows the return of 7-Eleven Day (aka Free Slurpee Day) – which is observed each year on July 11 – after 47 days.