Michael M. Baden, M.D.  

15 West 53rd Street, Suite 18

New York, New York 10019

Telephone: (212) 397‐2732                     Facsimile: (212) 397‐2754

10 October 2009 

Via e­mail:  e.walsh@fiegerlaw.com

Giroux 

Rebecca Walsh, Esq. 

Fieger, Fieger, Kenney, Johnson & 

9390 West Ten Mile Road 

outhfield, Michigan 48075‐2463 

1

S

Re: William Ryan Smith, deceased

Dear Attorney Walsh: 

  I  have  reviewed  the  autopsy  and  toxicology  reports,  scene  and  autopsy 

photographs, Sterling Heights police reports, contemporary handwritten statements of 

witnesses, the October 31, 2007 typed statement of  Janis L. Pitts, the video deposition 

testimonies  of Officers  Roeske,  Bastianelli  and Dwojakowski,  and  a  one minute  scene 

video clip that you sent to me relative to the death of William Smith. 

  According  to  the  Sterling  Heights  police  report,  Mr.  Smith,  15  years  old,  was 

chased by police after stealing a car about 9:15 p.m. on October 12, 2006.  He crashed 

the car in a mobile home community.  Three police officers state that they approached 

the  car  while  he  was  still  seated  in  it,  shouted  at  him  multiple  times  to  “show  your 

hands,” when he suddenly turned toward them holding a gun in his right hand pointing 

it at them.  All three then fired at him striking him fourteen times. 

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10 October 2009 

Page 2 

  The  internal  police  investigation  concluded  that  “the  officers  exited  their 

vehicles, produced their handguns and gave explicit instruction to ‘show your hands,’ at 

which time the suspect produced a weapon.  All three officers immediately discharged 

their weapons...” 

  Officer  Bastianelli  testified  that  he  ran  toward  the  stopped  car  yelling  loud 

commands to “show us your hands,” “see your hands” and heard other officers shouting 

commands.    He  saw  that  the  driver  was  facing  forward  with  his  left  hand  on  the 

steering wheel and that he then turned holding a gun in his right hand, pointed it at him 

and all three officers then fired together.  Officer Bastianelli further testified that Officer 

Roeske was nearest to the car and he saw him strike the driver side front window with 

his  baton  in  his  left  hand  seconds  before  the  driver  turned  and  they  then  fired.  

According to Officer Bastianelli, his position was across from the middle of the driver’s 

door, Officer Roeske was near to the driver’s rearview mirror and Lt. Dwojakowski was 

b  the driver by the rear driver side window.  ehind

  In the September 10, 2009 deposition of Lt. Dale Dwojakowski, he states that he 

thought  he  was  the  first  officer  to  reach  the  stolen  car,  that he  approached  the  front 

driver  side  window  from  behind  and  that  he  could  see  that  the  driver  was  facing 

forward with both of his hands “clenched onto  the steering wheel.”  The car windows 

were shut and the engine was running.  He claims that he screamed at the driver at the 

top of his voice to “put up your hands,” “show me your hands,” “show me your fucking 

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10 October 2009 

Page 3 

hands” repeatedly while his hands were still holding onto the steering wheel.  He heard 

no one else shouting verbal commands. 

  Lt.  Dwojakowski  testified  that  he  was  concentrating  on  watching  the  driver’s 

hands,  standing  behind  him,  with  his  gun  pointed  at  his  body.    Suddenly  he  saw  the 

driver spin around toward him, moving his left shoulder against the back of his car seat, 

rotating his torso to face the driver’s side window, and he then saw that the driver had 

a gun in his right hand pointed at him.  Although he had been  focusing on Mr. Smith’s 

hands, he hadn’t seen him reach for or get the weapon.  He hadn’t seen Officer Roeske 

strike the driver’s side window until he saw a video after the shooting.  Lt. Dwojakowski 

concluded  that  he  had  discharged  his  weapon  less  than  two  seconds  after  Officer 

Roeske struck the window. 

  The police canvassed the neighborhood for witnesses and found at least six who 

had heard the gunshot discharges but no one who had heard verbal commands given to 

the  driver  before  the  shooting.    Ms.  Janis  Pitts  specifically  states  that  she  saw  gun 

muzzle  flashes,  saw  and  heard  shots  being  fired  and  that  the  officers  said  nothing 

before firing.  She further states that she could, from her mobile home, see a “young boy 

behind  the  wheel  with  his  hands  grasped  tightly  to  the  upper  part  of  the  steering 

wheel” when he was shot.  “I saw the boys hands fall from the steering wheel and slump 

over into the passenger seat of the car.”  She did not see him move to get a gun, hold a 

gun  or  turn  toward  the  police.    According  to  Lt.  Dwojakowski’s testimony,  the  boy’s 

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10 October 2009 

Page 4 

fingerprints were not present on the toy gun that he had  found in the car and at least 

o gerprint of another person was.    ne fin

  The autopsy identified  fourteen gunshot wounds  that struck Mr. Smith  only  on 

the left side of his arm, shoulder, torso and head.  The trajectories of all fourteen bullet 

tracks  are  entirely  consistent  with  Ms.  Pitts’  description  that  his  hands  were  on  the 

wheel and that he was facing forward, left side of his body toward the police, when he 

was shot.  The trajectories are not consistent with police testimony that Mr. Smith was  

shot  while  he  was  turned  to  his  left,  facing  the  police,  and  holding  a  gun in  his  right 

h oi te  at a police officer and p n d behind him or at the side of the vehicle. 

  It  is  my  opinion,  to  a  reasonable  degree  of  medical  certainty,  based  on  my 

training  and my  45  years  experience  as  a  forensic  pathologist  and medical  examiner, 

and  on  the materials in  this matter  that  I  have  thus  far  reviewed,  that Mr. Smith was 

facing  forward and not  turned  toward  the police pointing a gun at  them when he was 

shot.  It is also my opinion, on the basis of the wounds he received, that Mr. Smith was 

not  injured  when  the  car  crashed,  and  that  he  experienced  fright,  pain  and  suffering 

after the crash while he was being shot at before he lost consciousness. 

            Yours very truly, 

            Michael M. Baden, M.D. 

          Former Chief Medical Ex

        City of New York  

aminer, 

   

MMB:ph 

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