Former Columbus, Ohio, police officer Adam Coy has been charged with murder in the shooting death of Andre Hill, the state's attorney general announced Wednesday.
Coy was detained and charged with a single count of murder, one count of felonious assault and two counts of dereliction duty. Coy is scheduled to be arraigned on Friday.
"I believe the evidence supports the indictment," Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost stated at a press conference.
Officers were responding to some 311 non-emergency call for a noise complaint.
"The family of Andre Hill is alleviated this afternoon, however they aren't happy with an indictment of the police officer who killed Andre Hill as he held a mobile phone walking out of a garage," Ben Crump, the Hill family's attorney, said at a news conference Thursday.
He explained why the family isn't satisfied is because in other cases throughout the country white officers have been acquitted on charges stemming from the killings of Black people.
"They need [former] officer Adam Coy to be detained for the unjustified, unnecessary and senseless killing of Andre Hill, that was only holding a mobile phone," Crump added.
Hill's loved ones echoed Crump.
"I wish to thank the grand jury for viewing exactly what we watched and coming to the exact same conclusion we came to, that was murder, because they outright murdered my brother," said Hill's sister, Shawna Barnett, speaking to police body camera movie that captured the shooting and its aftermath. "We're happy, it made my day , but this is not the end. We are here for the long run however long it takes. My brother, we owe him that. I really don't want him to have died in vain."
Hill's only child, Karissa Hill, 27, a mother of three young kids, said news of the indictment caused her to"genuinely smile" for the first time since her father's passing.
"It's just hard as this is what is supposed to occur when another person murders somebody. The prosecutors are supposed to get this done.
She noticed that the indictment came only days after the Columbus City Council passed a law in her dad's name which requires authorities to flip on their own body when reacting to calls and to instantly render first aid after a use-of-force event. She noted that the law and the indictment of Coy happened during the first week of Black History Month.
"I just feel like Adam Coy messed with the wrong household," she said. "And this household isn't backing down. We're not allowing loose and we're on it and we're going to make sure all four convictions happen. That's what we want and that's what we're shooting ."
Hill's brother, Alvin Williams, said every citizen in Columbus and throughout the nation, regardless of race, should be outraged by his brother's passing.
"It is not a white and black matter. This is a public issue," Williams stated.
Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther also applauded the grand jury's decision.
The indictment doesn't lessen the pain of the tragic death for Mr. Hill's loved ones, but it is a step towards justice.
The indictment of Coy comes just days after Columbus Police Chief Tom Quinlan resigned at the request of the mayor. Ginther, who hired Quinlan a bit over one year ago, said that in the wake of Hill's death the chief lost the public's trust after neglecting to"successfully implement the reform and shift that I anticipate and that the community needs."
Among Coy's lawyers, Mark Collins, told ABC Columbus affiliate WSYX-TV that Coy intends to plead not guilty to the charges. Collins reported the indictment against Coy, especially the murder charge, does not make sense,'' saying, it indicates his client intentionally meant to kill Hill.
"The knowing element, to cause serious bodily injury with a deadly weapon, and somebody died, that is the concept, however, police officers are trained a particular way to take an action and to prevent a threat. So that sort of does not make sense," Collins explained.
Police body footage published in December revealed officers handcuffing a seemingly lifeless Hill after shooting him multiple times, without rendering first aid.
Citing the body camera movie, Crump said the officers waited about 15 minutes until they began giving Hill initial aid.
Coy told police that he thought he saw a firearm on Hill prior to shooting. Hill had a phone in his left hand. No weapons were discovered.
Officer Amy Detweiler, who also responded to the criticism, told investigators she heard Coy scream that Hill had a gun in his hand. She explained she couldn't remember if Coy ordered Hill to drop a weapon. Detweiler also stated she didn't see a gun in Hill's hand and that she did not observe any threats from Hill.
Police body footage also showed a girl coming from the home where Hill was captured and telling authorities,"He was bringing me Christmas money. He did not do anything" Police ordered her to return in the house without asking her questionsthe footage shows.
Coy didn't turn his body camera until after he fired shots in Hill. However, his camera triggered and recorded 60 seconds of this incident without noise.
