Page 23 - Florida Sentinel 1-1-21

National
Officer Who Killed Andre Hill Has Been Fired
McConnell Blocks Initial Senate Request To Vote On $2,000 Stimulus Checks
The Senate appears to be in a stand-off situation Tuesday af- ternoon, involving votes on two large pieces of legislation. It’s un- clear how long into the week it will stretch, and when, or if, in- creased aid to Americans could come.
The Senate was slated to con- sider the House’s measure passed Monday night increasing direct payments to individuals in the COVID relief package from $600 to $2,000, as well as hold an override vote on the national defense bill.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell blocked an attempt by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to approve in- creasing the direct payments by a unanimous vote.
McConnell said he brought the Senate back this week to tackle three priorities, as outlined by President Donald Trump over the weekend; larger direct payments, Section 230 protec- tions for internet plat-
Adam Coy, the Colum- bus, Ohio, police officer who shot and killed Andre Hill, was fired Monday, according to a statement from Public Safety Director Ned Pettus Jr.
Coy's termination follows a disciplinary hearing held earlier in the day. The local chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police represented him at the hearing.
"The information, evi- dence and representations made by Chief (Thomas) Quinlan as the investigator are, in my opinion, indis- putable. His disciplinary rec- ommendation is well- supported and appropriate," Pettus said. "The actions of Adam Coy do not live up to the oath of a Columbus Police officer, or the standards we, and the community, demand of our officers."
Coy fatally shot Hill, who was Black, last Tuesday within seconds of their en- counter, as Hill walked to- ward Coy holding an illuminated cell phone in his left hand, body camera footage shows. Hill was un- armed.
ADAM COY AND ANDRE HILL
SENATOR MITCH MCCONNELL
forms and concerns about wide- spread election fraud. “This week, the Senate will begin a process to bring these three pri- orities into focus,” McConnell said on the floor of the Senate.
Schumer then called for the Senate to vote on both the de- fense bill veto override and the increased payments bill passed by the House in a process that would "fast-track" the bill. Mc- Connell objected without com- ment, according to the Washington Post.
Quinlan had recom- mended firing Coy. Quin- lan said in a statement Monday the evidence against Coy provided "solid ration- ale" for termination.
"This is what accountabil- ity looks like," Quinlan said, adding that Coy will now have to answer to state inves- tigators regarding Hill's death.
Family outraged Crump and Hill's sister, Shawna Barnett, pushed for transparency in Hill's shooting during a Monday morning interview on CNN's
"New Day."
"There's video that the family understands exists, that after seven minutes of
him laying motionless on the ground, they did put him in handcuffs," Crump said. "So we're demanding that the other police bodycam video be released so the world can see that they continued to show disrespect to unarmed Black people."
Columbus police released 13 minutes of footage from Coy's body camera last week. The footage shows a group of officers approaching Hill, who's lying on the ground, about seven minutes after the shooting, but be- cause Coy was pacing around the scene and police haven't released additional video, it's not clear when Hill was handcuffed.
FBI Releases New Photo Of Bomber In Downtown Nashville Christmas Day Explosion
NASHVILLE, TN - Federal investigators are working to determine what drove a 63- year-old domestic terrorist, Anthony Quinn Warner, to detonate an RV parked in downtown Nashville on Christmas morning, killing himself in the process.
Both local authorities and the FBI have tied Warner to the explosion. Parts of Sec- ond Avenue were destroyed when an RV exploded outside an AT&T transmission build- ing early Christmas morning.
The FBI said Warner was not on law enforcement’s radar prior to the bombing, and TBI records released Monday show Warner’s only arrest was for marijuana possession in 1978.
“We hope to get an an- swer. Sometimes, it’s just not possible,” David Rausch, the director of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said
ANTHONY QUINN WARNER BOMBER OF DOWNTOWN NASHVILLE
in a Monday interview on NBC's “Today” show. “The best way to find motive is to talk to the individual. We will not be able to do that in this case.”
Rausch said they are still working to determine a mo- tive in this case with FBI and ATF. They are still conduct- ing interviews that knew Warner.
A neighbor told the Asso-
ciated Press that he had a conversation with Warner at his mailbox Dec. 21.
After asking how Warner’s elderly mother was doing, Laude said he ca- sually asked him, “Is Santa going to bring you anything good for Christmas?” Laude said Warner smiled and then said, “Oh, yeah, Nashville and the world is never going to forget me.”
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