Fuhrmann stopped Williams for driving around traffic barricades and would later learn he should not have been driving at all due to a suspended license. After Williams refused to provide his name, Fuhrmann moved to arrest him and not long after Williams got out of his vehicle, Fuhrmann repeatedly tased him. This is a major update in the Melvindale Police Department case involving Lieutenant Matthew Fuhrmann. The city of Melvindale has agreed to pay $1 million to settle a civil lawsuit over a police tasing incident during a traffic stop. That payment was made by the city's insurance carrier. Shortly after issuing the payout, the insurance company notified Melvindale that it will drop the city's coverage citing risk concerns. In a separate development, Melvindale Police Chief Chris Egan has now terminated Lieutenant Matthew Fuhrmann for cause. Fuhrmann is currently facing multiple criminal charges connected to three separate use of force incidents. Those criminal cases remain active and are still moving toward trial. At least two additional civil lawsuits involving Melvindale police conduct are also pending. Thin blue lies, baby. And now that we've covered the official version, let's translate this into plain English. Melvindale didn't suddenly discover this behavior last week. They didn't wake up shocked. They didn't stumble into accountability. They got a $1 million bill and their insurance company said, "Yeah, we're not covering this circus anymore." That's when the firing happened. Tonight, a tiny downriver community is dealing with some big problems following a $1 million settlement stemming from claims of police misconduct. As the 7 Investigators have reported for more than a year, Lieutenant Matthew Fuhrmann has generated complaints, lawsuits, and criminal charges throughout his career. And now he could be costing the city its insurance provider. 7 Investigator Ross Jones explains why. We did enter into a settlement. It's been resolved. The city of Melvindale recently agreed to settle a lawsuit against one of its officers for $1 million. One of two pending civil cases stemming from alleged abuses by Lieutenant Matthew Furman, who's currently facing criminal charges. How you doing today? The payout stems from this July 2024 traffic stop of Drakkar Williams. Hands behind YOUR BACK. WHO GOT ME? WHO GOT FURMAN WOULD LATER BE HIT WITH ASSAULT charges stemming from this stop, along with two other cases we revealed by Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy. In December, the criminal case against him was bound over for trial. Furman has pleaded not guilty. No amount of money can restore Mr. Williams to know who he was before his encounter with Furman. Best thing that could happen is what the law can provide. >> Attorney David Robinson represented Drakkar Williams in the civil suit, where neither Furman nor the city admitted any wrongdoing. Not long after the city's insurance carrier agreed to pay out the million-dollar settlement, they notified the city that they were dropping Melvindale as a client. Come April, the city says it will need a new provider and is scrambling to find one today. That's a big deal, and yet Mayor Nicole Skiera and every member of the city council either declined to comment for this story or said they didn't have time to. Perhaps they're too embarrassed or something to admit the fact that they had hired and continued to tolerate the antics of someone like Furman. With multiple other lawsuits still pending against the town of 12,000, city insiders say they fear they may not be able to find an insurance company that's willing to take the risk. The fact that the city will not have a carrier to protect uh it from uh its own employees, frankly, puts the burden and respons- financial responsibility back on the city. They become self-insured. Now, here's where this story gets interesting. Because once the million-dollar settlement is reached, suddenly, Melvindale discovered something it somehow missed for years. Melvindale didn't discover new facts. It discovered it could no longer defend or insure this officer. And that's when the city decided it was finally time to fire Lieutenant Matthew Furman. And now to a controversial Downriver police lieutenant who has lost his badge tonight. The decision comes 1 day after the 7 investigators revealed how alleged misconduct by Officer Matthew Furman led to the city of Melvindale to settle a recent lawsuit for a million dollars. 7 investigator Ross Jones explains how this decision was made. Matthew Furman has been fired. The controversial Melvindale lieutenant, currently facing five felony charges and fending off seven-figure lawsuits after having his police powers suspended, had his badge taken from him, too. The letter from Chief Chris Egan was short but clear. It is without question that your conduct warrants termination for cause. Hands behind your back. YOU DO IT HE'S TASING ME. HIS CONDUCT was at the center of a series of 7 News Detroit investigations over the last year. Tasings that Wayne County's prosecutor considered assault, like this one of Drakkar Williams, who was stopped over a traffic offense. HE'S TASING ME. HOW AM I GOING TO STOP HIM? HE'S TASING. COOPERATE. What am I doing? It's because of you that they did something. So, if it wasn't for you actually looking into something, they wouldn't have never found it. And this one of Alicia Cook, a mom who Firman stopped while she sat in a parked car outside a Melvindale school WITH HER DAUGHTERS. >> [screaming] >> MY DAUGHTER THAT I WAS TAKING TO SCHOOL, she's in a mental hospital today. You know, so his actions caused a lot of pain, but um I do forgive him. Chief Chris Eagan declined an on-camera interview over Firman's firing, but said today by phone, "We are not okay with bullies. We are not okay with excessive force. We have a good group of officers here that need a foundation." Let's be very clear about something. Lieutenant Firman wasn't fired because leadership suddenly found morals. He wasn't fired because internal investigations worked. He wasn't fired because the system corrected itself. He was fired because liability caught up. Insurance companies don't care about thin blue lines. They care about risk models, payout histories, and future exposure. And Melvindale officially crossed the line from problem department to financial liability. What we see is not a police officer acting under the color of law or acting in accordance with his duties, but acting as someone who willingly thinks that they can do whatever they want on any given traffic stop to whomever they want. In all, Firman was hit with five felonies and three misdemeanors over the alleged criminal behavior. He has pleaded not guilty. At a preliminary exam in December, Firman's defense attorney said his client's conduct may not be popular, but it is not a crime. Now judge, you may sit there and say, "I don't like how Lieutenant Firman talks." Hell, you may say he's a real You may say that, and I understand that, but that doesn't make it criminal. Well, the criminal case against Firman is set to go before a jury in April. In a text message, Firman declined comment on today's news. His criminal attorney tells me that his client learned about his firing today not from the city, but from me. He said Furman should have been afforded notice and a hearing, and the police union will be filing a grievance. He added they do look forward to his criminal trial that's starting in just a few months. We'll of course be monitoring that, but there's a lot going on in Melvindale. This is just one more piece of that story. Yeah, and to hear victims say thank you was a powerful moment. >> It was the the the whole thing was powerful. Yeah, thank you, Ross. >> Thank you, Ross. And of course, right on cue, the union is stepping in to fight the firing, because nothing says accountability like arguing that a guy who cost the city a million dollars should still keep his job. Now, don't get me wrong. Firing Furman for cause is overdue, but firing is not justice. It's not accountability, and it doesn't undo the damage. Criminal trials are still coming. Civil lawsuits are still pending, and the city is now scrambling to find insurance, because no carrier wants to underwrite a department that ignored this for years. So, here's the real lesson. The system didn't fix itself. The badge didn't self-correct. Leadership didn't suddenly grow a spine. Money did. When the lawsuits pile up, the system panics. And when insurance walks away, suddenly accountability becomes urgent. Fin blue lies, baby.