LANSING, Mich. (AP) -- The Michigan Supreme Court upheld the manslaughter conviction of a former Detroit police officer in the beating death of black motorist Malice Green.
The court, in an order earlier this month, said the judge in Larry Nevers’ trial didn’t make a mistake in the way he instructed the jury.
Green, an unemployed steelworker, was beaten to death with a flashlight outside a suspected crack house in 1992. Nevers and his partner, Walter Budzyn -- both white -- were convicted of second-degree murder the following year.
Budzyn’s first conviction was overturned in 1997 by the state Supreme Court, which ruled that his jury was unfairly influenced by being shown “Malcolm X” -- a movie containing footage of the Rodney King beating by Los Angeles police -- during a break in deliberations. He was convicted of involuntary manslaughter at retrial and sentenced to time already served.
Nevers’ conviction was overturned in late 1997 by a U.S. District Court judge who determined Nevers was denied a fair trial. The judge cited the “Malcolm X” screening and the jury’s exposure to media speculation that there could be rioting in Detroit if the white officers were acquitted.
Nevers went to trial again in 2000, was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and was sentenced to up to 15 years in prison.
He had been charged with second-degree murder, but was acquitted on that charge and found guilty of the lesser manslaughter offense. A three-judge appeals panel said the trial judge had improperly instructed the jury on involuntary manslaughter. The state Supreme Court reversed the appeals panel.
Nevers, who has emphysema and lung cancer, was released from prison in May 2001 to serve the rest of his sentence at home.