Lucido dropped from First Amendment lawsuit
Pastor accused prosecutor of violating Constitutional rights
When a civil rights activist filed a federal lawsuit against Macomb County Prosecutor Peter Lucido this past summer, the county’s chief law enforcement officer predicted it would be eventually dismissed.
Last week, Lucido was proven correct.
The attorney for the Rev. Willie Rideout Jr., who filed the action, voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit the day before Thanksgiving. No explanation was included in legal documents dropping Lucido.
“They only included my name in their lawsuit to sensationalize it,” Lucido said. “There was no basis, there was no merit to that lawsuit. I guess they felt the only way to get some media attention was to bring my presence into the picture.”
Azzam Elder, who filed the federal lawsuit on Rideout’s behalf, did not respond to an email and a phone call left at his Dearborn law office.
Rideout, a well-known Macomb County pastor, accused Shelby Township Police Chief Robert Shelide, several police officers and the township, along with Lucido and three assistant county prosecutors in the suit, which was filed in July.
He accused the defendants of violating his First Amendment rights via retaliation, among other charges, for arresting him during a 2020 rally protesting the Shelby Township police chief’s controversial social media comments about Black Lives Matter protestors.
The arrest took place six months before Lucido took office as prosecutor. Former prosecutor Eric Smith was forced to resign due to corruption charges, and Jean Cloud was named the acting prosecutor.
“The incident took place long before Lucido got in office or even Lucido took his oath of office,” the prosecutor said, referring to himself in the
third person.
“Why did he sue Lucido and not the acting prosecutor. What merit did the lawsuit have? None.”
Prosecutors are immune from lawsuits and prosecution under a judge-made doctrine that shields them in near-absolute immunity. According to the principle, prosecutors can’t be sued for any actions related to their performance as a prosecutor, no matter how egregious their actions might be.
Macomb County assistant prosecutors William Cataldo, Joshua Van Laan, and Patrick Coletta were previously dismissed from the suit.
Protestors have called for the termination or resignation of Shelide and Shelby Township Trustee John Vermeulen, who allegedly shared a Facebook post mocking the removal of Aunt Jemima from Quaker Oats products less than two days after he and four other trustees suspended Shelide for his posts.
Noting Rev. Rideout and his attorney held a press conference in front of the federal courthouse in Detroit to announce his 63-page lawsuit, Lucido said he would ask the media to report the dismissal with as much “fanfare” as they did while reporting on the filing.
A docket shows the suit is still pending in federal court. U.S. District Judge Matthew F. Leitman has ordered it to undergo case management, a sign indicating a settlement may be near.