Police officers in Columbus, Ohio shot and killed a Black man while he was standing in his garage. According to The Columbus Dispatch, officers were responding to a non-emergency call around 1 a.m. on Tuesday morning (Dec. 22) about a car that had been running on and off in the street.
Officer Adam Coy and a female officer then noticed 47-year-old Andre Maurice Hill standing in an open garage. Hill, who was staying as a guest at the home, had his back turned to police and was holding a cell phone. Neither officer had their body camera turned on during the shooting, but the cameras provide a 60-second “look back” feature, which captures video, but no audio.
The cops could be seen flashing their lights at the garage. Hill then turns around and takes a few steps toward the officers. Within a matter of seconds, Coy — a 19-year veteran of the police department — drew his gun on Hill and shot him.
After Hill collapses to the ground with a fatal gunshot wound, Coy orders him to roll over and put his hands up. The video, for which the audio kicks in around the 40-second mark, shows that neither officer gave Hill any first aid, as they are required to do.
The female officer can then be heard radioing the department to say that both she and Coy are ok. She requests an officer support unit for Coy and begins putting up crime scene tape. She does not request a medic.
At least six additional officers arrive to the scene — none of them offering first aid to Hill — with one actually instructing Coy to “cuff him up.” Around 10 minutes after the shooting, a medic finally arrives. Hill was pronounced dead less than an hour later at the OhioHealth Riverside Methodist Hospital.
According to the Dispatch, Coy was taken to a nearby police station after the shooting. TMZ reports that the officer has been placed on paid administrative leave and that the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation has opened an investigation.
Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther condemned Coy’s handling of the incident and demanded he be fired from the department.
“I am also very disturbed about what I don’t see next in the body-worn camera footage,” Ginther said. “From what we can see, none of the officers initially at the scene provide medical assistance to Mr. Hill. No compression on the wounds to stop the bleeding. No attempts at CPR. Not even a hand on the shoulder and an encouraging word that medic were in route.”
“So let me be clear, if you’re not going to turn on your body-worn camera, you cannot serve and protect the people of Columbus,” he added. “I have asked Chief Quinlan to remove the officer involved of duty and turn in his badge and gun.”
Warning: the below video of the shooting is extremely graphic.