Mistrial declared in civil case of man killed by Columbus police

COLUMBUS — A mistrial was declared Wednesday in a lawsuit brought by the estate of Henry Green, a Columbus man who died in a shootout with two plainclothes Columbus Police officers in June 2016.

A docket entry noted “jurors cannot come to a unanimous decision. Mistrial declared.” Meredith Tucker, spokeswoman for Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein, confirmed the mistrial late Wednesday.

Adrienne Hood, Green’s mother and plaintiff in the suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Columbus, told The Dispatch that attorneys from both sides will talk with U.S. District Judge Edmund A. Sargus Jr. in coming days to determine a next step.

Green’s estate could pursue a new trial.

“We’ll move forward from there,” Hood said. “I have to stay in this for even longer. I’ll be in it, obviously, for the rest of my life. But it’s been an emotional week and a half. I definitely would have liked a for-sure win today, but I did not lose. There’s the ability to fight again.”

She added: “I meant what I said from the beginning, and I will fight for my son.”

Green, 23, was shot eight times during an incident in South Linden, dying as a result of a gunshot wound to the chest, according to court documents.

Columbus Police officers Zachary Rosen and Jason Bare were on patrol in the area, on East 26th Avenue. The officers said Green pulled a firearm on them, and they fired after Green refused orders to drop his weapon, according to documents.

A Franklin County grand jury determined in 2017 that there was no wrongdoing by the officers and did not indict them in the shooting.

Hood, as administrator of her son’s estate, sued in federal court, alleging wrongful death and the use of unreasonable force against her son.

The district court initially ruled in favor of the officers and others named in the suit, writing that the officers’ use of deadly force was reasonable and did not amount to excessive force.

A three-judge panel of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, however, remanded the case for further deliberations, noting in a majority decision: “The experts from both parties indicated that some of Green’s gunshot wounds were sustained while he was in a ‘lowered’ position, likely when he was down on the ground or in the process of going down … a jury could reasonably conclude that the officers’ use of force in this context was unreasonable.”

The trial in the case began before Judge Sargus on Nov. 8, with closing arguments presented on Monday, according to court documents. Jury deliberations began late Monday, with the hung jury declared Wednesday afternoon.

“Throughout the course of this litigation, we have respected the decisions of the judge, and we’re grateful for the jury, who took their time deliberating about this case,” Klein said in a released statement late Wednesday. “We will continue to stand by the facts of this case until its conclusion.”