Detroit Cop Accused Of Assault During George Floyd Protests

DETROIT, MI — A Detroit police officer has been charged with assault in connection with the shooting of three photojournalists with rubber bullets during protests over the death of George Floyd.

Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy on Monday announced that Detroit Police Corporal Daniel Debono, 32, is charged with three counts of felonious assault, a felony carrying a maximum penalty of up to four years in prison.

"The evidence shows that these three journalists were leaving the protest area and that there was almost no one else on the street where they were," Worthy said in a statement. "They were a threat to no one. There are simply no explicable reasons why the alleged actions of this officer were taken."

Prosecutors said Debono in the early morning hours of May 31 was sent with other officers to police demonstrations regarding the death of Floyd, a Black man who died while in police custody with a police officer's knee on his neck.

Debono, dressed in riot gear, fired his weapon at three photojournalists who were walking at Woodward Avenue and State Street with their hands up and while identifying themselves as journalists, prosecutors said.

The journalists — Nicole Hester of MLive, and independent journalists Seth Herald and Matthew Hatcher — each received injuries from rubber bullets, prosecutors said. Hester had injuries to her face, neck, arms and legs, prosecutors said.

Arraignment information has yet to be released.