WARREN, Mich. (WXYZ) — Video from a nearby landscaping business and police dash camera detail the exact moment a Warren police car collided with another vehicle.
That Sept. 30, 2024, crash killed two men, driver Cedric Hayden Jr. and his passenger Dejuan Pettis.
Watch the video report below:
“We have two young girls and two young boys missing their dad. We have mamas missing their kids, we have grandmothers missing their grandkids, their grandsons, their uncles, their brothers, their cousins," said Dominique Hayes, the mother of Pettis' child.
Hayden and Pettis’ family members gathered at Fieger Law offices Monday morning to view the newly released video.
The impact was difficult for all of them to watch.
Watch the newly released video below:
"These men are important, these men mattered, these men were loved," said James Harrington, a Fieger Law attorney representing both families in a civil case that was filed months ago.
"We are in what's called the discovery process, where we are discovering evidence in the case, which is how we were able to obtain these videos and turn them over to you."
He says video obtained from a nearby gas station showing moments before the crash happened is some of the most important evidence in their case.
"We have a video from a Marathon gas station that captures the police cruiser traveling in front of it at 117 mph, which was approximately 320 yards away from where the impact happened — that's almost 1,000 feet," Harrington said.
Watch previous coverage about the case in the video player below:
Attorneys for the city believe the video being presented by Fieger Law doesn't tell the whole story. They say while their hearts are with everyone impacted, they allege Hayden was driving without a license and with a blood alcohol level over twice the legal limit.
A preliminary hearing for the criminal case also began Monday.
A former Warren police officer and alleged driver of the scout vehicle that morning, James Burke, stood in front of district court judge John M. Chmura as well as a packed court room.
Macomb County prosecutors called several witnesses to the stand s they begin to try to show they have enough evidence to take the case to trial.
Family members of the two men who died say they continue to hope for justice.
"Every day, we have to deal with this. We don't want to keep living this anymore. We just want it to be over with, that's all," Shakearia Maye, Pettis’ mom, said.
