The 911 dispatcher who instructed police to respond to a Cleveland recreational center, resulting in the November 2014 shooting death of a 12-year-old Black boy, was suspended for eight days, CBS News reports.
A White officer shot and killed Tamir Rice, who was found holding a toy gun.
CBS writes:
“Police Chief Calvin Williams found in a disciplinary letter dated March 10 that Constance Hollinger violated protocol the day of the shooting of Tamir Rice, who had been playing with a pellet gun.
Cleveland safety director Michael McGrath also handed down a two-day suspension for police officer William Cunningham, who was working off duty without permission at the Cleveland rec center where Rice was shot.”
According to surveillance footage, Tamir was shot within seconds after officers Timothy Loehmann and Frank Garmback arrived at the scene. Cleveland’s internal disciplinary team accused Hollinger of excluding key details when she spoke with dispatch, failing to inform them that the man who initially reported the call warned Tamir could be a “juvenile” and that the gun might be “fake.”
The omission was used by former Cuyahoga County prosecutor Timothy J. McGinty to show that the shooting could have been avoided if information was conveyed to the officers properly.
Tamir’s mother, Samaria Rice, called the length of suspensions “unacceptable” in a released statement.
“Eight days for gross negligence resulting in the death of a 12-year-old boy,” Rice’s attorney, Subodh Chandra, also said in the statement. “How pathetic is that?”
Chandra continued saying, if that’s the best solution the system can offer, “then the system is broken.” Rice has repeatedly called for Loehmann and Garmback’s termination, as they have yet to face disciplinary action.
Last April, the city of Cleveland agreed to pay $6 million in a federal civil rights lawsuit settlement.
SOURCE: CBS News
SEE ALSO:
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Tamir Rice Case: 911 Dispatcher & Officer Suspended For Roles In Shooting was originally published on newsone.com