It was supposed to be a typical evening late last year in Michigan when a mother of five was pulled over for a routine traffic stop. That stop turned into a living nightmare after she was shot six times by a Detroit police officer. She survived what she alleged was an “unjustified” shooting, and wants the City of Detroit and the cop to pay up big time.
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Tracey Allen was driving on 8 Mile Road on Oct. 26, 2025, when Officer Zachary Melvin initiated a stop for speeding, an obscured license plate and windows with excessive tint, according to local news station WXYZ 7.
The confrontation at Van Dyke and Savage Avenues escalated after Allen allegedly refused to hand over her driver’s license, according to Melvin’s initial account. “When you’re driving a vehicle and you’re pulled over, you have to comply,” Chief Todd Bettison said at the time, CBS News reported. “You have to, by state law, you have to provide your driver’s license.”
Allen requested a supervisor, but police denied the request, prompting her to call 911. “I truly believed I was going to be killed. I kept telling them I was scared, I kept asking for help,” Allen said, according to ClickonDetroit.com.
Bettison said officers removed Allen from her vehicle and used pepper spray after she did not cooperate with police. Allen eventually returned to her SUV and drove to the intersection of Concord Street and Outer Drive, according to police. Officers in the area blocked her vehicle and issued further verbal commands, but police claimed she still failed to comply.
That’s when Melvin, “fearing for their life and the life of others,” fired at Allen, officials said. She was struck six times, with wounds to both arms and one leg.
“I thought I was gonna get shot in my head,” Allen claimed. “He asked me to get out the car twice. I shook my head no. That’s when he began to shoot my truck up. As he shot my truck up, I pulled off. I didn’t know I was hit until I got to the light.” Cops “immediately” provided aid to Allen before she was taken to the hospital.
Turns out, Bettison later admitted Allen “did give her license, she did give her registration, her insurance was on her phone. If a supervisor had been called, I don’t think it would’ve went this way.”
Now, Allen is suing the City of Detroit and Melvin for $25 million in a federal lawsuit, CBS News updated. Her lawsuit is seeking damages for her injuries that she says require long-term medical care and rehabilitation.
Maurice Davis, Allen’s civil rights lawyer, said during a Thursday press conference his client’s lawsuit “is not about being anti-police, it’s about accountability.”
“I’d be lying if I told you I was okay,” Allen said. “Mentally, I’m not. Physically, I’m not.”
Officer Zachary Melvin is still on the force but has been suspended without pay since early November.
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