Global InformationKilling of Tamir Rice information
 Tamir Rice in 2014 | |
| Date | November 22, 2014 |
|---|---|
| Time | c. 3:30 p.m. |
| Location | Cudell Recreation Center, Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States |
| Coordinates | 41°28′45″N 81°45′09″W / 41.479083°N 81.752365°W |
| Type | Child homicide by shooting, police killing |
| Filmed by | Surveillance video |
| Participants |
|
| Outcome | Loehmann fired in 2017 |
| Deaths | Tamir Rice |
| Inquiries | Closed investigation |
| Charges | None |
| Litigation |
|
On November 22, 2014, Tamir E. Rice, a 12-year-old African American boy, was killed in Cleveland, Ohio, by Timothy Loehmann, a 26-year-old white police officer. Rice was carrying a replica toy gun; Loehmann shot him almost immediately upon arriving on the scene. Two officers, Loehmann and 46-year-old Frank Garmback, were responding to a police dispatch call regarding a male who had a gun.[3][4][5] A caller reported that a male was pointing "a pistol" at random people at the Cudell Recreation Center, a park in the City of Cleveland's Public Works Department.[6] At the beginning of the call and again in the middle, he says of the pistol "it's probably fake."[7] Toward the end of the two-minute call the caller states that "he is probably a juvenile", but the dispatcher did not relay either of these statements to Loehmann and Garmback.[8][9][10]
The officers reported that when they arrived at the scene, they both continuously yelled "show me your hands" through the open patrol car window. Loehmann further stated that instead of showing his hands, it appeared as if Rice was trying to draw: "I knew it was a gun and I knew it was coming out."[11][12][13] The officer shot twice, hitting Rice once in the torso.[4][14] According to Judge Ronald B. Adrine, "...On the video the zone[clarification needed] car containing Patrol Officers Loehmann and Garmback is still in the process of stopping when Rice is shot."[13] Rice died the following day.[15]
Rice's gun was found to be an airsoft replica; it lacked the orange-tipped barrel that would have indicated it was a toy gun.[16][17] A surveillance video of the incident was released by the police four days after the shooting, on 26 November.[18] On 3 June 2015, the Cuyahoga County Sheriff's Office declared that their investigation had been completed and that they had turned their findings over to the county prosecutor. Several months later the prosecution presented evidence to a grand jury, which declined to indict, primarily on the basis that Rice was drawing what appears to be an actual firearm from his waist as the police arrived.[12][19][20] A lawsuit brought against the city of Cleveland by Rice's family was subsequently settled for $6 million.[1]
In the aftermath of the shooting it was revealed that Loehmann, in his previous job as a police officer in the Cleveland suburb of Independence, Ohio, had been deemed an emotionally unstable recruit and unfit for duty.[21] Loehmann did not disclose this fact on his application to join the Cleveland police,[22] and the Cleveland Police Department did not review his previous personnel file before hiring him.[21] In 2017, following an investigation, Loehmann was fired for withholding this information on his application.[22] A review by retired FBI agent Kimberly Crawford found that Rice's death was justified and Loehmann's "response was a reasonable one".[23] The incident received both national and international coverage. It occurred on the heels of several other high-profile shootings of African-American males by police officers.
- ^ a b "City of Cleveland to pay $6 million to Tamir Rice's family to settle lawsuit". April 25, 2016. Archived from the original on April 25, 2016. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
- ^ "Cleveland mayor apologizes for Tamir Rice ambulance claim". Reuters. February 12, 2017. Archived from the original on February 10, 2021. Retrieved July 2, 2017.
- ^ "Tamir Rice Shooting - Cleveland Police Dispatch Radio". YouTube. November 24, 2014. Archived from the original on August 8, 2015. Retrieved February 15, 2015.
- ^ a b Izadi, Elahe; Holley, Peter (November 26, 2014). "Video shows Cleveland officer shooting 12-year-old Tamir Rice within seconds". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on January 1, 2016. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
- ^ McCarthy, Tom (November 26, 2014). "Tamir Rice: video shows boy, 12, shot 'seconds' after police confronted child". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on November 27, 2014. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
- ^ "Cudell Recreation". Retrieved April 28, 2019.
- ^ Tamir Rice Shooting: Tamir Rice Shooting 911 Call Released By Cleveland Police Tamir Rice Video. YouTube. November 26, 2014.
- ^ "Tamir Rice Shooting: Tamir Rice Shooting 911 Call Released By Cleveland Police Tamir Rice Video". YouTube. November 26, 2014. Archived from the original on February 10, 2021. Retrieved February 15, 2015.
- ^ "Cleveland cop who murdered 12-year-old Tamir Rice not told boy's age". Daily News. New York. December 13, 2014. Retrieved December 13, 2014.
- ^ "Tamir Rice shooting: Officers were not told the gun could be a fake or that suspect was juvenile". newsnet5.com - Cleveland. Archived from the original on February 17, 2016. Retrieved November 24, 2014.
- ^ "CBS, Show me your hands and reaching claim". CBS News. December 2015. Archived from the original on February 10, 2021. Retrieved September 26, 2017.
- ^ a b cleveland.com (December 28, 2015), Tamir Rice decision: Video shows Tamir Rice pulls gun from waistband, archived from the original on February 10, 2021, retrieved January 19, 2017
- ^ a b Cite error: The named reference
scribd.comwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Ferrell, Nikki (November 26, 2014). "Cleveland Police name Timothy Loehmann, officer who shot Tamir Rice, 12, on west side". Scripps TV Station Group. Retrieved November 27, 2014.
- ^ MacDonald, Evan (November 24, 2014). "Cause of death released for 12-year-old boy shot by Cleveland police". Retrieved November 26, 2014.
- ^ Fitzsimmons, Emma (November 23, 2014). "12-Year-Old Boy Dies After Police in Cleveland Shoot Him". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 10, 2021. Retrieved November 25, 2014.
- ^ "Tamir Rice: US police kill boy, 12, carrying replica gun". BBC. November 24, 2014. Archived from the original on February 10, 2021. Retrieved November 25, 2014.
- ^ "Protests break out in Cleveland over Tamir Rice shooting, Ferguson grand jury decision". The Plain Dealer. November 26, 2014.
- ^ "Tamir Rice investigation complete, going to prosecutor". WKCY. Archived from the original on January 5, 2016. Retrieved June 8, 2015.
- ^ "No Indictment For Cop Who Fatally Shot 12-Year-Old Tamir Rice". The Huffington Post. December 28, 2015. Archived from the original on February 10, 2021. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
- ^ a b Cite error: The named reference
LATimes.unfitwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ a b Bever, Lindsey; Lowery, Wesley (October 26, 2021). "Cleveland police officer who fatally shot 12-year-old Tamir Rice is fired — but not for the killing". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on February 10, 2021.
- ^ "Tamir Rice shooting was 'justified' - experts". BBC News. October 11, 2015. Retrieved August 11, 2023.