FLINT (AP) -- A judge says Flint police won't be held responsible for a woman who followed through on a threat to kill her boyfriend.
Shirley Ann Ewing was arrested for trespassing at her boyfriend's home in October 2002. Upon release, she returned and fatally shot Leon Smithers.
Smithers' estate sued Flint and two police officers, claiming the death could have been prevented if Ewing had been held on a domestic-violence charge. But U.S. District Judge Stephen Murphy III closed the case Friday.
He adopted the recommendation of U.S. Magistrate Judge R. Steven Whalen, who says Flint officers had discretion in how to handle Ewing and didn't violate Smithers' constitutional rights.
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