Cop at scene saw no threats from Andre Hill before police shooting

COLUMBUS, Ohio — An officer on the scene of the fatal shooting of Andre Hill in Ohio’s capital city last week didn’t perceive any threats and didn’t see a gun, contrary to a mistaken claim by the fellow officer who killed Hill, according to records released Tuesday.

The records provide new details into the Dec. 22 shooting of 47-year-old Andre Hill, a Black man who was fatally shot by Officer Adam Coy, who is white, as Hill emerged from a garage holding a cell phone with his left hand and his right hand not visible.

The city fired Coy on Tuesday, accusing him of incompetence and “gross neglect of duty,” among other charges.

Columbus Officer Amy Detwiler said she saw a man — later identified as Hill — walk away from a car after arriving at the scene of the non-emergency call, according to a summary of her internal affairs interview released Tuesday. Coy had gotten there first. Detwiler didn’t see any interaction between Hill and Coy, but said Coy told her Hill had walked into a next-door garage.

After the officers crossed over to the garage they saw Hill, with Detwiler telling investigators “she felt Mr. Hill may need assistance to enter the residence,” according to her interview.

Coy asked Hill in a “normal tone of voice” to exit the garage and Hill complied but without responding, Detwiler said.

As Hill walked out, Detwiler “did not observe any threats from Mr. Hill,” nor did she see a gun, the internal affairs report said.

“Officer Detwiler stated Officer Coy observed a firearm and yelled, ‘There’s a gun in his other

hand, there’s a gun in his other hand!’ ” the report said. “Officer Detwiler heard gunfire at this

moment.”

No gun was found at the scene, police said.

Stephen Zenner / AFP via Getty Images A protester holds a sign demanding the resignation of Columbus Chief of Police Thomas Quinlan during a demonstration against police brutality in front of the Fraternal Order of Police in Columbus, Ohio, on Monday. Adam Coy, the Columbus police officer who shot and killed Andre Hill, an unarmed Black man last week, was fired on Monday by the city’s public safety director.