Family Of Man Killed By Royal Oak Cop Says Murder Case Mounting

ROYAL OAK, MI — Twenty-eight year old Antonino Gordon was shot to death in a White Castle drive-thru by a Royal Oak Police officer this week and his family now wants the cop to be charged with murder. They won’t take legal action themselves, a family member told Patch, but will wait for Oakland County Prosecutor Jessica Cooper to file second-degree murder charges, they hope.

“He was trying to start his life and that came to a tragic end as a result of a police officer illegally gunning him down,” said Joseph Dedvukaj, attorney and uncle of Gordon’s wife, about the man who was a newlywed and aspiring owner of a construction business. “Police officers cannot use a gun unless they are repelling an attack that is the equivalent type of attack. This officer had no basis to shoot and kill him.”

Police said Gordon had fled when they tried to pull him over 15 minutes prior to his death, but it’s unclear why shots were fired when police met back up with him at the fast-food restaurant. Gordon was in the driver’s seat when he was shot and drove several blocks down 13 Mile before dying behind the wheel, just a block and a half from his apartment, Dedvukaj said.

Authorities have been tight-lipped on the details of the case, issuing a statement that it would be “inappropriate” to comment during a pending investigation, but the family says evidence is mounting against the officer, who possibly shot Gordon not once, but several times.

An official with the Oakland County Medical Examiner’s Office said Thursday that Gordon died from “gunshot wounds,” but would not say exactly how many. Eye-witnesses told media this week that four to five shots were fired in the altercation that took place at 6:30 p.m. April 10 near 13 Mile and Coolidge Highway.

Authorities have said that Gordon had prior police encounters and a warrant out for his arrest, but Dedvukaj disputes that police knew that before shooting Gordon since he was driving someone else’s vehicle at the time of the incident.

“The police are trying to smear this young man with a prior alleged history that has nothing to do with that incident,” Dedvukaj said. “They could not have possibly known anything about him to use that as a justification.”

Dedvukaj said he has also seen physical evidence that points to multiple shots being fired and a case for murder against the officer, such as photos with at least four shell casings. He said he hopes the officer is held to the full-extent of the law and that the nation will be watching this case as a standard for how the Royal Oak Police Department handles the case.

“This is an extremely important case reflecting a public outcry and standard of local police departments,” he said. “They must make sure justice is done and the only way that will happen is if he’s charged with second degree depraved heart murder.”

Per department policy, the officer, who was not injured in the incident, was placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation by the Oakland County Sheriff's Office.

This was the second fatal police shooting in Oakland County within a week. Police shot and killed 23-year-old Robert George Issa after he reportedly threatened officers with knives on April 9.

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