Chief offers few answers in fatal shooting
Kettering officer killed Fairborn man after traffic stop.
Kettering police KETTERING — Chief Chip Protsman is asking residents to wait for answers about Sunday night’s police-involved fatal shooting.
Police officer Jonathon McCoy shot and killed Jason M. Hoops, 33, of Fairborn after a traffic stop of his gray Ford van Sunday evening near Craig Drive and East Bataan Drive.
Protsman didn’t respond to questions about why Hoops’ vehicle was stopped, what happened in the three minutes from the stop to the gunfire, why McCoy said Hoops’ gun was in a pocket after the shooting or how many shots were fired. “We just want to pass on to the
public that being an officer sometimes can be very difficult and I understand that they want information. And that they’ll want it quickly,” Protsman said.
“We want to make sure we do a thorough job again for the officer that’s involved and for the family of the deceased. So, I would ask that they give us some patience
and understand that as soon as we get information that we can release, we certainly will do that.”
This news organization has requested cruiser cam footage, McCoy’s personnel records and 911 calls related to the shooting at 6:39 p.m. Sunday in northeast
Kettering.
Protsman said those requests have been forwarded to Kettering city attorneys. Kettering Law Director Ted Hamer said Monday afternoon he didn’t have an estimate as to when
that information would be available.
Protsman said Hoops’ vehicle was stopped by McCoy at 6:36 p.m. Sunday, three minutes before shots were fired. The Kettering police incident report states, “Suspect failed to comply with verbal orders.”
The chief said that when he reviewed the cruiser cam, two passengers inside Hoops’ vehicle were “begging and pleading for this individual to not touch the gun and to respond to the commands
that the officer was giving to him.”
Protsman said at 6:38 p.m. Sunday, McCoy called for additional assistance and at 6:39 p.m., the officer said shots were fired and requested a medic.
“The cop was out with his big rifle,” witness Ashlei Back told this news organization. “And he was yell- ing, ‘Get down.’ Everything just happened really fast.”
McCoy told dispatchers, “One down, he still has
the firearm in his pocket,” according to radio traffic released by Kettering police.
Protsman said, per policy, McCoy has been placed on administrative leave. Prots- man said Monday morning that McCoy had not yet been interviewed by investigators. The chief said it was the first time McCoy has fired his service weapon while working for Kettering.
Dispatch traffic indicated Hoops suffered a gunshot wound, but the Montgomery County Coroner’s Office did not elaborate on how many times he was hit or the cause or manner of his death.
Hoops had two 2009 felony convictions in Greene County Common Pleas Court for assault and possession of controlled substances.
Efforts to get comments from Hoops’ family were unsuccessful, but a fund- raising website for Hoops’ funeral stated, in part: “When he was younger he made some mistakes as everyone does. But he was a loving son, brother and father. Everyone that knew Jason liked him and he would do anything to help a friend out.”
At 6:41 p.m., additional officers arrived and administered first aid until med- ics from the Kettering Fire Department arrived. They transported Hoops to Miami Valley Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
McCoy has been with the Kettering Police Department since May 2015. He also worked as a full-time officer at the University of Dayton from December 2012 until May 2015 and as a parttime officer with Cedarville from November 2013 to May 2015.
Protsman said McCoy is a “very good officer” who is “well-liked” by the department and community. McCoy is a member of the SWAT team and a bicycle officer.
Protsman said Ohio’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) will handle the evidence, but that his department will handle both the criminal and internal investigations.
“I’m very proud of the way they handled the situation,” Protsman said about his offi- cers’ response to the shooting and investigation. “They are a tremendous group of women and men who do things very professionally and handle things very well.
“It is a tragic event, something that happens in law enforcement, obviously, from time to time. We are concerned about the officer who was involved, to make sure that his well-being is good. We’re also concerned about the victim’s family.”
Protsman said he wouldn’t address whether some Kettering residents question the officer’s actions.
“We are investigating that right now,” the chief said. “We are going to go over everything very thoroughly. And again, I’m not going to make any judgments or make any statements until the investigation is complete.”