In an unprecedented action, the Michigan State Police is suing the Oakland County Sheriff's Office to find out why it took deputies so long to respond to the scene of a shooting. The incident started when local residents reported to authorities that they heard a man and a woman, both shot and bleeding on the ground, crying for help.

Eventually Ferndale police escorted an EMS crew into the area, but the incident prompted headlines, interest from the governor's office and an unusual lawsuit assigned to Ingham Circuit Judge William Collette. "This is just part of a review of an incident to get as much information on what happened and also on everyone's response," Shanon Akans, a state police spokeswoman, told the Associated Press.

"When we were denied the records under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), we took the next step and filed a lawsuit." Matt Frendeway, a spokesman in the attorney general's office, said no one there was aware of any other case where the State Police had sued another law enforcement agency under the Freedom of Information Act. Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said this was the last way he wanted to make history.

"In 20 years of law enforcement, I've never heard of police suing police," Bouchard told reporters. "It's nothing but a big waste of time, effort and taxpayer money. Worse, it could set a dangerous precedent that could endanger Oakland County citizens. I'm not giving out information on where police are at a specific time." Michigan State Police investigators said that while Oakland County has provided dispatch 911 tapes and other records, it has specifically denied them the "location and duty status" of sheriff's patrol cars "between 3:15 and 4:30 a.m." for the night of July 15, 2007.

Last February, a township cost-cutting move reduced its contracted patrols with the Sheriff's Office. The State Police assumed responsibility for township police response on midnight shifts. According to 911 tapes, state police dispatchers informed the sheriff's office on July 15 that no cars were available to respond to the shooting at 3:33 AM and it wasn't until several minutes after 3:52 AM, when Ferndale police escorted an EMS crew there, that state troopers arrived.

The investigation began after the Detroit News reported how a commander at the Metro North Post less than two miles from the shooting said that resources were unavailable because troopers had been assigned to a governor's detail in northern Michigan. Bouchard said State Police are apparently attempting to determine if any sheriff's cars were nearby but did not respond to the shooting. Lawrence Dubin, law professor at University of Detroit Law School, found the lawsuit "highly unusual." "You don't normally find police agencies fighting in court over records and FOI requests," he said.