Andre Maurice Hill, 22.12.2020. Shot dead – Columbus

Andre Hill, an unarmed Black man, was shot after officers were dispatched to a “non-emergency” disturbance call from a neighbor who allegedly saw a man sitting in an SUV for an extended period of time turning his car on and off, according to the Columbus Department of Public Safety.

Upon their arrival, officers Adam Coy and his colleague found Hill sitting in a vehicle inside an opened-door garage. The officers approached the 47-year-old with shining flashlights. Hill walked toward the pair, holding up a cell phone. About five seconds later Coy shot Hill. No weapon was found at the scene, and none of the other responding officers had their cameras on until after Hill was shot, according to investigators.

The incident was only partially captured by the officer’s body camera. The devices within the department are set up so that they are always running and overwriting unwanted footage. However, once they are switched to record, the camera automatically keeps the previous 60 seconds of footage minus the accompanying audio. Officer Coy turned on his own camera only after he’d already shot at the man who lay on the ground dying.

As the officers waited for medical help to arrive, neither offered Hill any assistance for approximately five minutes. They did not try to stop the man’s bleeding. Instead, as Hill lays on the floor, Coy, a white, 19-year veteran officer commands, “Don’t move dude.”

Andre Hill was pronounced dead at Ohio Health Riverside Methodist Hospital.

An Ohio coroner has ruled that the police killing was a homicide. The Franklin County coroner’s office announced the determination in a brief statement, saying that its preliminary investigation shows Andre Hill died of multiple gunshot wounds.

Public Safety Director Ned Pettus, who is the only official with the authority to fire police officers, said Coy had violated the department’s use-of-force policy, failed to follow protocol by delaying the activation of his body camera, and failed to render aid to the dying man.

“The actions of Adam Coy do not live up to the oath of a Columbus Police officer, or the standards we, and the community, demand of our officers,” Pettus wrote in a statement. “The shooting of Andre Hill is a tragedy for all who loved him, in addition to the community and our Division of Police.” “Prior to shooting Mr. Hill, (Coy) did not attempt to use trained techniques to de-escalate the situation,” Pettus also said.

Coy remains under criminal investigation in the shooting with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation leading the inquiry. Additionally, U.S. Attorney David DeVillers said his office will review whether any federal civil rights laws were violated. Attorney General Dave Yost was appointed special prosecutor. The FBI’s Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office are also aiding in the investigation.

Adam Coy has a remarkably dense history of complaints against him. During a drunk-driving stop in October 2012, Coy punched a man, slammed him on the ground, and repeatedly bashed his head into the hood of his car while the man was handcuffed. The incident, witnessed by a college student and Coy’s own dashboard camera, was so bad the victim was awarded a $45,000 settlement from the city. An internal police investigation found that the driver did not appear to be resisting arrest in the first place. Other incidents have dotted Coy’s professional record. The Dispatch reported nine complaints against him in 2003, alone. He received written counseling for those incidents. A Daily Beast review of Coy’s Internal Affairs Bureau file reveal more than 180 complaints against him since he joined the force. Most were labeled as unfounded, unsustained, or within the allowed limits of police force. But at least 16 reports were marked as sustained.