DETROIT (WXYZ) — Michael Lopez testified in his own defense after the prosecution rested its case. He's accused of killing a Melvindale police officer, Mohamed Said, in 2024.
Watch Darren Cunningham's video report:
Similar to Thursday and Friday, Monday's hearing ended in dramatic fashion.
After barring him from the courtroom for his outbursts late last week, the judge reminded Michael Lopez he has the right to testify.
PREVIOUS STORY: Judge removes Michael Lopez from courtroom after another outburst
Monday, she asked him repeatedly if he understood there is certain information that he cannot bring up because it's inadmissible in court. He hesitantly agreed, but eventually, he had another outburst while on the stand.
His defense attorney asked him, "What substances had you used that evening (before the shooting)?"
Lopez replied, "Uh, crack cocaine, meth, fentanyl, drinking, weed.”
He recalled the moment he ran from Said, after he said the officer reprimanded him for littering.
"I had my weapon in my hand, and he was on top of me and as soon as I had my... as soon as I had the opportunity, I protected myself from dying. Um, I thought he was going to kill me back there in that yard," Lopez said.
His attorney asked, "What did you do?"
Lopez said, "Um, I shot Mr.
His attorney interjected, "I understand that you shot him."
During cross-examination, the prosecution referred to two unrelated encounters Lopez had with law enforcement in years past, including a carjacking arrest.
In that case, he disarmed an officer, and in the other, he ran from the officer.
The prosecutor said, "So, fair to say, on three occasions in your lifetime, anytime you feel like you’re gonna get caught by the police, you run away. Correct?"
Lopez replied, "Yeah.”
When asked about the gun he used to kill Officer Said, Lopez defied the judge’s order and started discussing information he was told is not admissible in court.
The prosecutor said, "You knew that the officer was going to be investigating you for the gun, right?"
Lopez replied, "I knew that he was the one who my family filed a grievance on."
The prosecutor injected, "See, I knew you couldn’t comply with the judge’s commands."
Lopez said, "I knew that this man was targeting me.
The prosecutor said, "No."
Lopez said, "I’m just telling the truth. You wanna hear the truth.”
The judge called a recess.
A bailiff said, "All rise for the jury."
Lopez said, "I didn’t think they wanted me to tell ya’ll that."
The judge repeatedly tells Lopez to stop talking.
As he left the courtroom, he turned to his attorney and said, “Thanks for nothing, John. You hear me?”
On that note, court ended for the day and resumes in the morning. There's a good chance closing arguments will start then.
