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U.S. NEWS A3
Officer Won’t Face Charges in Death of Tamir Rice
MARK GILLISPIE
Associated Press
CLEVELAND (AP) — A grand
jury declined to indict a
white rookie police officer
in the killing of 12-year-old Tamir was gunned down by
Tamir Rice, a black young-
ster who was shot while
playing with what turned
out to be a pellet gun, a
prosecutor said Monday.
Prosecutor Tim McGinty
said it was “indisputable”
that the boy was gunned
down while drawing the
pistol from his waistband —
either to hand the weapon
over to police or to show
them it wasn’t real. But Mc-
Ginty said the officer and
his partner had no way of
knowing that.
“Simply put, given this per-
fect storm of human error,
mistakes and miscommuni-
cations by all involved that
day, the evidence did not
indicate criminal conduct
by police,” McGinty said.
He said patrolman Timothy
Loehmann was justified in
opening fire: “He had rea-
son to fear for his life.”
Tamir’s family condemned
the decision but echoed
the prosecutor in urging
those disappointed to ex-
press themselves “peace-
fully and democratically.”
Barricades were set up
outside a Cleveland court-
house in case of protests,
and a few demonstrators
gathered, holding up pic-
tures of Tamir and others
killed by police around the
country.
A grainy surveillance-cam-
era video of the boy’s No-
vember 2014 shooting pro-
voked outrage nationally,
and together with other kill- it at other children, Meyer
ings of black people by po-
Tuesday 29 December 2015
lice in places such as Fer- The Cleveland police de- Loehmann’s actions were charges. “She was broken
guson, Missouri, and New partment reached a settle- reasonable. The family also up, and it was very hard,”
York City, it helped fuel the ment with the U.S. Justice said that the prosecutor al- the prosecutor said.
Black Lives Matter move- Department earlier this lowed the officers to read Both officers insisted that
ment. year to overhaul its use of statements to the grand they shouted at Tamir re-
force. The settlement was jury without being subject- peatedly to show his hands
Loehmann within two sec- prompted largely by a car ed to cross-examination. before Loehmann opened
onds of the officer’s police
cruiser skidding to a stop Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Timothy McGinty speaks during a news conference at police
near the boy outside a city headquarters, in Cleveland. A grand jury declined to indict a white rookie police officer in the
recreation center. Loehm- killing of 12-year-old Tamir Rice, who was shot while playing with what turned out to be a pellet
ann and his white training gun, a prosecutor said Monday.
partner, Frank Garmback,
were responding to an (Lisa DeJong/The Plain Dealer/AP)
emergency call about a
man waving a gun. chase that ended with the The family renewed its re- fire. Loehmann fired twice,
Tamir was carrying a bor- killing of a couple in a 137- quest for the U.S. Justice with one shot missing the
rowed airsoft gun that shot barrage of police gun- Department to step in and boy. “With his hands pulling
looked like a real gun but fire. conduct “a real investiga- the gun out and his elbow
shot nonlethal plastic pel- In a statement, Tamir’s tion.” Federal prosecutors coming up, I knew it was
lets. It was missing its telltale family said it was “sad- in Cleveland noted Mon- a gun and it was coming
orange tip. dened and disappointed day that a civil rights inves- out. I saw the weapon in
The grand jury had been by this outcome — but not tigation into the case is al- his hands coming out of his
hearing evidence and tes- surprised.” It accused the ready underway. waistband and the threat
timony since mid-October. prosecutor of “abusing and In addition, Tamir’s fam- to my partner and my-
In explaining the decision manipulating the grand ily has filed a federal civil self was real and active,”
not to charge either officer, jury process to orchestrate rights lawsuit against the Loehmann told investiga-
McGinty said police radio a vote against indictment.” two officers and the city. tors. After the boy’s killing,
personnel contributed to Tamir’s family charged McGinty said it was a it was learned that Loehm-
the tragedy by failing to that McGinty improperly “tough conversation” with ann had washed out from
pass along the “all-impor- hired use of-force experts Tamir’s mother when she the police force in a Cleve-
tant fact” that the person to tell the grand jury that was told there would be no land suburb.q
who called police said
the gunman was probably
a youngster and the gun
probably wasn’t real.
Assistant Prosecutor Mat-
thew Meyer said it was “ex-
tremely difficult” to tell the
difference between the
pellet gun and a real one.
And he said Tamir was big
for his age — 5-foot-7 (1.7
meters) and 175 pounds
(80 kilograms) — and could
have easily passed for
someone much older.
Before police arrived, the
youngster was seen repeat-
edly drawing the gun from
his waistband and pointing
said.