The white cop reponsible for the fatal shooting of Andre Hill has been fired. Officer Adam Coy was terminated on Monday (Dec. 28) hours after Columbus Safety Director Ned Pettus Jr. held a hearing to determine his status of employment.
As REVOLT previously reported, Coy and an accompanying officer responded to a nonemergency call about a vehicle that had been turning on and off. Within seconds of encountering Hill in an open garage, he fired at him and ignored his pleas for medical assistance. The footage was captured by an automatic “look back” feature on the police’s body camera, but has no audio as the cameras weren’t activated — an action that should have taken place the moment Coy began interacting with Hill.
After reviewing the video of the incident, Police Chief Thomas Quinlan filed two criminal misconduct charges against Coy and called for his termination. “We have an officer who violated his oath to comply with the rules and policies of the Columbus Division of Police,” he said in a video statement. “And the consequences of that violation are so great, it requires immediate action. This violation cost an innocent man his life.”
Coy has since been relieved of his duties and stripped of his gun, badge and police authority.
“The information, evidence and representations made by Chief (Thomas) Quinlan as the investigator are, in my opinion, indisputable. His disciplinary recommendation is well-supported and appropriate,” Pettus Jr. said at the hearing. “The actions of Adam Coy do not live up to the oath of a Columbus Police office or the standards we and the community demand of our officers.”
Coy’s actions will be further investigated by Attorney General Dave Yost, the U.S. attorney’s office and the FBI’s Civil Rights Division.
“We will do our duty based on the facts and the law,” tweeted Yost, who was recently named a special prosecutor in Hill’s death. “Whatever the outcome, someone will be angry—but the decision will be objective.”
The actions of other responding officers will also be investigated as they failed to turn on their cameras and render aid to Hill.