DETROIT (WXYZ) — A Wayne County sheriff’s deputy with a laundry list of controversies first revealed by 7 News Detroit last September was fired last week following an on-duty fight.
This month, deputy Jamonte Horton and another deputy were involved in a fistfight on one of the jail's floors. Sources say the altercation was triggered following an argument between Horton and an inmate, prompting another deputy to intervene.
Horton and the other deputy quickly got physical, sources say, and fists were thrown. On Thursday, Sheriff Raphael Washington decided to fire Horton, saying in a statement that he’d already been given a “second chance.”
Watch below: He's not allowed to be a police officer. Why is he a Wayne County Sheriff's deputy?
In truth, Horton’s hiring in Wayne County marked his fourth chance in law enforcement. He’d resigned or been fired by three prior departments.
FOLLOW OUR ONGOING INVESTIGATION: Shielded
Horton’s problems began early in his career. While only a cadet with Wayne State Police, he showed up to a party with a loaded gun. After a fight broke out, Horton was shot and returned fire. He resigned in 2015 for his role in the shooting.
He later joined the Ypsilanti Police Department, where Horton was written up for missing shifts, “found sleeping in his patrol vehicle” and caught sharing a homemade pornographic video with other officers while on duty.
He was written up for putting his fellow officers at risk like when he left a sergeant alone during a traffic stop and missed a knife during a search of a domestic violence suspect.
While working a sexual assault investigation, Horton failed “to follow simple orders” that led the case to be ignored for two-and-a-half months, according to a Wayne County background check, leaving the suspect free on the streets.
“Victims are the reason why police departments are in business. To help victims, and help people from being victims,” Ricardo Moore, a Detroit Police Commissioner, said.
“He shouldn’t be trusted with the privilege of being a police officer.”
Facing termination from Ypsilanti, Horton resigned in 2019. His chief said he’d been given “multiple opportunities to improve” but still wasn’t capable of “completing his core duties,” like “coming to work” and “remaining awake.”
After being pushed out of Ypsilanti, Horton joined the Highland Park Police Department, where his judgment was questioned early and often.
In 2020, Horton responded to the scene of a stabbing at a strip club along Woodward Avenue. When it was time to handcuff a suspect, Horton was seen handing his department-issued AR-15 to a strip club security guard—a violation of department policy.
In a separate incident, while searching for a suspect, Horton did a u-turn across two lanes of traffic, striking another vehicle. According to Highland Park P-D, he kept driving without checking on the driver he just hit.
But the final straw came in 2022. While Horton was out on patrol, he heard over the radio that Detroit and Michigan State Police were engaged in a high-speed pursuit.
According to Highland Park’s investigation, Horton was “ordered not to get involved” in the chase, but he did anyway. When he did, according to investigators, Horton manually turned off his body camera during the pursuit.
When questioned by internal affairs, Horton said the camera malfunctioned.
“I didn’t engage in no chase, I wasn’t involved in a chase or anything,” Horton said during an interview.
But GPS data confirmed he was involved in the chase and, according to internal affairs, Horton made “several false statements” during the investigation.
Highland Park called Horton’s misconduct “egregious" and, as it prepared to fire him, he resigned in October 2022.
Three weeks later, he was hired by the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office as a deputy.
Efforts Monday to reach Horton and his union regarding his termination were unsuccessful.
Contact 7 Investigator Ross Jones at ross.jones@wxyz.com or at (248) 827-9466.
