Ohio boy’s shooting death ruled a homicide
Police case goes to grand jury
CLEVELAND, Ohio — An Ohio medical examiner concluded Friday that a 12-yearold boy’s shooting death by police last month was a homicide. The case has now been sent to a grand jury, which will consider whether criminal charges are merited.
The police union defended the officers, who are on paid administrative leave, saying a dispatcher didn’t tell the pair involved in the fatal shooting that a gun the boy had in his possession might not be real or that the person might be a child.
Jeff Follmer, president of the Cleveland Police Patrolmen’s Association, said officers had no way of knowing Tamir Rice was carrying an airsoft gun, which shoots nonlethal plastic pellets, when a rookie cop shot him in the abdomen Nov. 22. Follmer added that the dispatcher followed protocol when sending the officers on what police call a “gun run.”
Surveillance video released by police shows Tamir being shot within two seconds of the patrol car stopping near him. In that time, Officer Timothy Loehmann told the boy to put his hands up, but he didn’t, according to police brass and Follmer. Tamir had nearly pulled the gun out of his waistband when Loehmann shot him, Follmer said.
The man who had called 911 told dispatchers someone was pointing a pistol that was “probably fake” and scaring everyone. The caller also said the person was probably a child.
Officer Frank Garmback pulled into the park after seeing Tamir at a distance and slammed on the brakes when Tamir did not run, as they had expected, Follmer said. That caused the car to slide on the slick grass and stop within a few feet of the boy, Follmer said.
An autopsy report made public Friday said Tamir stood 5 feet 7 and weighed 195 pounds. He was shot once in the abdomen and the bullet damaged a major vein and his intestines, the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner concluded in labelling the death a homicide.
Tamir’s mother, Samaria Rice, said at a news conference this week that a friend had given Tamir the airsoft gun. The guns are sold with an orange tip that is supposed to distinguish them from an actual firearm. There was no orange tip on Tamir’s gun.
A federal lawsuit filed by the boy’s family against the city and police said it took four minutes before anyone gave Tamir medical treatment. The autopsy did not say how long it took for someone to provide aid. The lawsuit also said the two officers acted recklessly.
Samaria Rice said Loehmann should be convicted of a crime. Loehmann’s father has said his son had no choice but to shoot because he thought the gun was real.
Several peaceful protests have taken place in Cleveland since the shooting, which occurred during a time when police-involved deaths have drawn national attention. Last week, the U.S. Justice Department released its finding from a 20-month investigation of Cleveland police that found a pattern and practice of officers using excessive force and violating people’s civil rights.