COLUMBUS — Columbus police officers handcuffed the body of an unarmed Black man and then stood around as he lay on the ground for more than five minutes without receiving first aid, according to National Civil Rights Attorney Ben Crump.
“He’s on the ground struggling for breath and none of the police officers render medical assistance to him. Not one of them,” Crump said at a press conference on New Year's Eve.
Hill was shot and killed by former Columbus police officer Adam Coy on Tuesday, Dec. 22 outside of a garage on Oberlin Drive.
Hill's death came weeks after Casey Goodson, Jr., 23, another Black man, was shot and killed by a Franklin County "Sheriff's Office" deputy on Dec. 4.
He was walking out of his garage with a cell phone in his hand when he was shot by Coy, who was responding to a non-emergency call of a person turning a car on and off in the middle of the night.
Coy failed to turn on his body camera and failed to administer first aid, Columbus police chief Thomas Quinlan said in a statement.
Crump said Columbus police are promising to be transparent with the investigation into the shooting.
Attorney Michael Wright, who also spoke at the press conference, revealed the troublesome record of coy.
“Adam Coy was hired in 2001. He’s had over 90 complaints,” Wright said.
Wright read a statement released by Quinlan back in 2008 regarding Coy’s behavior.
“If sustained improvements are not fully realized, a decision whether Officer Coy is salvageable must follow,” he said.
Hill’s siblings and daughter made emotional statements at the press conference on Thursday.
“I just cannot believe that in this day and age, that we still have to fight for things as basic rights that we have. We’re human beings,” said Shawna Barnett, Andre Hill's sister.
Hill's daughter, Karissa, said: “I have to do all these press conferences and share my dad's life with you guys just for people to make a decision that this is inhumane and that these officers should be in jail.”
