Black pastors call for Eaton County sheriff's office review

The leader of the Clergy Forum of Greater Lansing - a group of 24 local black pastors - asked this morning for an extensive investigation into Eaton County sheriff's Sgt. Jeff Lutz and all his cases involving African Americans. Melvin Jones, president of the group, was surrounded by about six pastors in front of West Town Plaza in Delta Township - where Lutz allegedly shot himself in the arm March 20, according to authorities. He blamed the incident on a fictitious black man. "We believe that the delicate balance of community trust has been broken by this incident and that a thorough internal investigation of the sheriff's department is needed to restore confidence in the integrity of the department and its ability to serve a diverse population," Jones said today. Jones said he would talk to the Eaton County Sheriff's Office as early as this afternoon about the group's concerns. Lutz was arraigned Tuesday on two felonies, filing a false report and shooting at a police vehicle. Lutz's claim that a black male shot him led to a massive manhunt that closed schools and the surrounding neighborhood. [more]

• Pictured above: The sketch was drawn from Sergeant Lutz's description of the shooter. The Eaton County Sheriff's Department said he was a black man with a light to medium complexion in his early 20s, he's about 6 feet tall and has a muscular build. At the time of the "shooting", police said he was wearing a dark Yankees baseball cap and a dark sweat suit to match.  [more]