DETROIT -- The son of the slain Detroit exotic dancer Tamara Greene went face-to-face with four city attorneys Thursday for a deposition.
Jonathan Bond is suing the city, accusing officials under former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick's administration of hampering the investigation into his mother's death.
Bond said he told attorneys that he loved his mom but that he was only 10 years old when she died, so he had very little to report about the circumstances of her death.
Bond, who is now 16 years old, wore a cross-shaped necklace with his mother's picture inside during the interviews.
"I just want some peace and justice, that's all," Bond said.
Attorney Norman Yatooma represents Greene's family in a $150 million wrongful death lawsuit.
Greene was gunned down in a drive-by shooting in 2003.
Yatooma's lawsuit claims Kilpatrick and high-ranking police obstructed the investigation into Greene's unsolved slaying.
Yatooma said he believes Greene danced at a party at the mayoral mansion several months before she was killed. Kilpatrick has denied that such a party took place, and a state investigation failed to confirm it.
State investigators called the party an "urban legend."
"The point of questioning, from where I was sitting, seemed to be that Jonathan's better off without his mom than when he was with her," Yatooma said. "Seems like a difficult argument to make."
Bond's father, Earnest Flagg said he cringed at several of the questions during the interview.
"They obviously disturbed by son. I saw his eyes," Flagg said. "The ringing of his hands, the movement and shifting of his feet."
But Flagg also said he was proud the his son stood up for his mother.
"I believe that is the message that he was able to send to them, that she had value to him and his siblings," Flagg said.
Bond said his mother he made him laugh and was fun to be around.
"She was just a good person," he said.
The case is set to begin in April, but sources said attorneys still have several stacks of paperwork to go through in preparation. The paperwork includes thousands of text messages sent on city-issued pagers from various Detroit officials.
Download: Motion Denies Access To Text Messages In Greene Case
Previous Stories: - February 15, 2009: Lawyer Won't See Texts In Greene Case
- February 3, 2009: Judge: Lawyer Can See Slain Stripper's File
- January 21, 2009: Motion Filed To See Texts In Greene Case
- November 19, 2008: Texts Turned Over In Slain Stripper's Suit
- October 24, 2008: New Evidence Fuels Slain Stripper Lawsuit
- May 14, 2008: Yatooma Says Greene Case Takes Step In Right Direction
- May 5, 2008: Greene's Other Children Join Brother In Lawsuit
- March 26, 2008: Greene Lawyer 1 Step Closer To Text Messages
- March 20, 2008: Yatooma: City Council Lawyer Playing Both Fields
- March 20, 2008: Greene's Pastor: She Knew People Were Out To Kill Her
- March 14, 2008: Magistrate To Review Text Messages In Slain Stripper Case
- March 11, 2008: Witness: Stripper Claimed Mayor's Wife Assaulted Her
- March 6, 2008: Judge Orders Preservation Of Mayor's Pager In Stripper Slaying Lawsuit
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