The Columbus Police Department has fired officer Adam Coy for fatally shooting Andre Hill on December 22, according to NBC News.
Columbus Police Chief Thomas Quinlan told the news outlet on Monday that Coy had been fired for violating two misconduct rules: the failure to turn on his bodycam before he fired at Hill and his refusal to provide medical assistance to the dying man.
As Blavity previously reported, after shooting the unarmed Hill, Coy and his partner stood idly by more than seven minutes without rendering aid.
They handcuffed his limp body and waited for a medic to arrive. Hill later died after eventually being transported to the hospital.
"Animals have more rights than we do right now. To let my brother lay there and die and not offer him any help in the whole 13-minute footage that we watched is unacceptable…While the officer was able to relieve his cough and get water, they let my brother lay there and didn't offer any help or assistance to him," said Hill's sister, Shawna Barnett, in an interview with CNN.
According to CNN, these are non-criminal departmental charges that gave the police department cause to fire Coy, a 19-year veteran of the city's police force.
“This is what accountability looks like. The evidence provided solid rationale for termination. Mr. Coy will now have to answer to the state investigators for the death of Andre Hill,” Quinlan said in a statement on Facebook.
"Some may call this a rush to judgment. It is not. We have an officer who violated his oath to comply with rules and policies of the Columbus Division of Police and the consequences of that violations are so great it requires immediate termination. This violation cost an innocent man his life," he added.
The bodycam video released by police shows Coy shooting Hill within 10 seconds of appearing before him. Hill was walking towards him with his cellphone and before he could say anything, Coy fired a shot into his chest.
It is unclear from the bodycam video if Hill is conscious after Coy shot him, but Coy made no effort to provide CPR or help Hill. Even when other officers arrive after minutes of Coy simply standing there, none of them administer CPR, only seeking to handcuff his limp body.
The video sparked outrage because of the quickness of Coy's shooting and his general callousness, but many, including Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther, called out all of the officers for refusing to even help Hill, according to local news outlet ABC6.
“None of the officers initially at the scene provided medical assistance, no compression on the wounds to stop the bleeding, no attempts of CPR, not even a hand on the shoulder or an encouraging word that medics were en route. It’s an officer’s duty to render aid,” Ginther said last week in a statement that called for Coy's firing.
Columbus Public Safety Director Ned Pettus, Jr. upheld Quinlan's decision to fire Coy, telling NBC News that the evidence was clear about what Coy did wrong.
“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. The shooting of Andre Hill is a tragedy for all who loved him in addition to the community and our Division of Police,” Pettus explained.
In his ruling, Pettus wrote that "known facts do not establish that this use of deadly force was objectively reasonable. You failed to de-escalate, and failed to render aid."
Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien put Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost in charge of the case, and Coy may face charges for his decision to shoot Hill to death.
Hill was staying at a friend's home and working in their garage when neighbor Robert Roenker called the police on him, claiming he was revving the engine and running the car late at night.
Roenker's call has enraged some because he himself jokes about approaching Hill but says he does not want to because he doesn't have a gun.
"I'd go out there but I don't want to get in trouble. I don't have a gun," Roenker said before laughing and saying his wife was concerned about the car.
At 1:20 a.m., Coy and another officer showed up to find Hill in the garage, not even waiting to hear an explanation before opening fire. The only reason we know what happened is because the bodycams have a "look back" feature that provide a soundless 60 second clip of what took place before it was turned on.
"There's video that the family understands exists, that after seven minutes of him laying motionless on the ground, they did put him in handcuffs. So we're demanding that the other police bodycam video be released so the world can see that they continued to show disrespect to unarmed Black people," civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who is representing Hill's family, told CNN.