Summary: Over a year after a boy was shot and killed by a Cleveland cop for pulling a realistic toy gun from his pants, criminal charges will not be brought against the cop that pulled the trigger.
A rookie Cleveland Cop shot and killed a 12-year-old boy a year ago. The boy, Tamir Rice, happened to be an African American playing with a toy gun while the officer, Officer Timothy Loehmann, happened to be white.
The local grand jury has decided that criminal charges will not be brought against Loehmann. The decision comes after enhanced video shows Rice reaching into his waistband for the toy, which the officer would not have been able to distinguish between real and fake.
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When Loehmann and his partner happened upon Rice, he was pointing his gun at imaginary villains and playing with snowballs. The gun was appeared to be real, giving the officers just seconds to respond when they were reasonably afraid for their safety and justified in responding with what ended up being deadly force. They have received a call about a man with a gun outside a local recreation center however Loehmann and his partner were not told by the dispatcher that the man may just be a child with a toy gun. They were only aware of an “active shooter” situation.
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When the officers arrived they repeatedly asked Rice to show his hands, but he instead reached into his waistband. When his elbow started to move up with the toy gun in his hand, Loehmann had no choice but to fire shots.
Looking back it is easier to assume that Rice was trying to show the officers that the gun was a toy, but there was no way for the officers to know that. They only saw a large 175-pound boy in size 12 shoes standing in front of them.
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Rice’s mother Samaria was understandably upset by the news, wanting someone to be held accountable for the death of her child.
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