The Supreme Court Declines to Block Lawsuit Against Grand Rapids Police Officer
The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to hear an appeal from Grand Rapids police officer Phillip Reinink, allowing a civil lawsuit to move forward over his use of force during the May 2020 downtown riot.
The decision keeps alive a lawsuit filed by Sean Hart and his fiancée, Tiffany Guzman, who are seeking $75,000 in damages after Reinink fired a canister at Hart during the unrest that followed the killing of George Floyd.
What Happened That Night
According to the Grand Rapids Police Department, Reinink intended to fire a muzzle blast canister, a nonlethal round designed for close-range use. Instead, he accidentally loaded a flashbang canister, which is designed for long-range deployment and fires a projectile that can be lethal.
Video from the incident shows Hart being sprayed with mace before Reinink fired the canister at him from close range. Hart said he was alone at the time.
"The pepper spray? OK. The canister (being) that close? There was no call for it. I was by myself," Hart told News 8 days after the incident.
An internal investigation by the GRPD concluded Reinink used unreasonable force. The officer was suspended for two days without pay, and the department said it changed its procedures following the incident.
The Qualified Immunity Question
The case centered on qualified immunity, the legal doctrine that often shields government officials from civil rights lawsuits. Reinink argued he should be protected from the lawsuit because the law was not clearly established at the time.
A federal judge in Michigan dismissed Hart's claim in March 2023. But the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed that ruling in May 2025, finding that Reinink would have been on notice that using deadly force in that situation was unlawful.
The Supreme Court's refusal to hear the appeal means the 6th Circuit ruling stands and the civil case can proceed.
Two conservative justices, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, noted they would have ruled in favor of Reinink.
No Criminal Charges
The Kent County Prosecutor's Office declined to bring criminal charges against Reinink. Prosecutors said that officers breaking up riots are afforded "a large amount of immunity" under the law.
"Knowing Officer (Phillip) Reinink would have this defense available to him under the law, we cannot charge him with a crime," the prosecutor's office said at the time.
A former police officer and deescalation instructor told News 8 that the firing of the canister went too far.
Why It Matters for Michigan
The case arrives as debate continues over qualified immunity and police accountability in Michigan and across the country. Protesters in the aftermath of Floyd's death called for reform of the doctrine, but those efforts largely stalled.
According to a 2020 Reuters investigation, police officers have increasingly succeeded in fending off excessive force claims thanks to Supreme Court rulings that strengthened qualified immunity protections.
Reinink filed his petition with the Supreme Court in August. The court's denial came without an opinion, as is typical for cases it declines to hear.
The civil lawsuit will now return to federal court for further proceedings.