A slow but steady race to regain trust in the legal system is underway in Ohio after a judge ruled that there is probable cause to charge officer Timothy Loehmann with the murder of 12 year old Tamir Rice. There is currently a grand jury investigation that is taking place surrounding the murder and as of now, no charges have been filed.
The investigations that have been going on since the shooting occurred in November 2014 have since been turned over to the county prosecutor by the by the county sheriff’s department. A group by the name of the “Cleveland 8” has lost confidence in the grand jury investigation and ultimately decided to seek charges on their own. Apparently, a rarely used provision under Ohio statues lead judge Ronald Adrine to find probable cause to charge Loehmann with murder.
In an even better step, the judge also found cause to charge Loehmann’s partner, Frank Garmback, with negligent homicide as he sat by and watched his partner shoot the 12 year old and failed to administer aid after Rice was down. With all the tensions that have been surrounding police killings of black men, the charges would definitely be a progressive step.
Unfortunately, though, the findings of judge Ronald Adrine are only suggestions and the decision of whether or not to bring charges against the officers still lies in the hands of the prosecutor in charge of the case. With the judges findings though, I would imagine more unrest to follow if the prosecutor decides not to file charges.
The Shooting…
Source: NBC News
