Man accused in Detroit police officer's funeral threat case makes bizarre court appearance

Deshawn Landon's brother: 'He doesn't like police; I don't either'

DETROIT – A man accused of making threats online to bomb the funeral for slain Detroit police officer Kenneth Steil was in federal court Thursday afternoon.

Deshawn Lanton is charged with using the internet to make a threat after officials said he posted a comment on a live stream of Steil's funeral.

"He's not a dangerous person," Lanton's girlfriend said. "That's all I want to say. He's not a dangerous person."

But Lanton agreed to stay in custody Thursday night after a bizarre, agitated appearance in federal court.

The threat was reported as Steil's wife, children and 1,000 officers mourned the officer's death.

"Maybe I should drop a bomb on that building to get rid of the rest of y'all," Lanton posted, according to authorities.

Lanton's girlfriend, brother and a friend were in court Thursday afternoon and said Lanton didn't mean the threat. But they wanted to make one thing clear: They do not like police.

"He was just playing," Mook Brown, Lanton's brother, said. "But he doesn't like police. I don't either."

Mike Williams said he hates police and agrees with Lanton. He said he lost a cousin in a police encounter.

Lanton filled his Facebook page with images of police getting shot.

"It's freedom of speech," Williams said.

Click on the video above to see Shawn Ley's full story on the bizarre hearing.

Sign up for ClickOnDetroit Email Newsletters (click here) for more stories like this.


About the Authors:

Local 4 Defender Shawn Ley is an Emmy award-winning journalist who has been with Local 4 News for more than a decade.

Derick is the Lead Digital Editor for ClickOnDetroit and has been with Local 4 News since April 2013. Derick specializes in breaking news, crime and local sports.