Police didn't help Andre Hill for 5 minutes after shooting
New police bodycam footage shows that multiple Ohio police officers stood by for several minutes without offering any first aid to Andre Hill after he was shot by a Columbus officer
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Multiple police officers stood by for several minutes without offering any first aid to Andre Hill after he was shot by another officer according to bodycam footage released Thursday.
The video from several Columbus officers show that Hill, a 47-year-old Black man who later died after being shot on Dec. 22 by Officer Adam Coy, who is white, was still alive and laying on a garage floor by himself while officers were securing the area.
Roughly five minutes after Hill was shot, one officer could be heard saying: "Let's cuff him up. He’s still moving.”
Two officers then rolled Hill onto his stomach as they handcuffed him and then put him on his back while other officers waited for an ambulance to arrive. One officer stood over Hill, shining a flashlight on him. Minutes later, a supervisor showed up and asked, “Anybody doing anything for him?” The supervisor then ordered an officer to start pumping Hill's chest.
Police Chief Thomas Quinlan said he was horrified by the lack of compassion shown in the body cam videos.
“As a police chief, and just as a human being, the events of the last week have left me shaken, and heartbroken for the family of Andre Hill,” Quinlan said in a statement. “Every man and woman who wears this badge should feel the same.”
Coy shot Hill when he emerged from the garage holding a cellphone with his left hand and his right hand not visible. Another officer on the scene said she didn’t perceive any threats and didn’t see a gun, contrary to a mistaken claim by Coy.
The city fired Coy on Tuesday, accusing him of incompetence and “gross neglect of duty,” among other charges.
According to the bodycam video released Thursday, Coy told another officer leading him away from the home: “I gotta figure out what I missed.”
“We’ll take care of that I promise you,” Officer Jared Barsotti responded.
Coy and Officer Amy Detweiler were responding to a neighbor’s nonemergency call when they encountered Hill.
A woman inside a house where Hill was shot told the officers moments after the shooting that he was coming over to bring her Christmas money, according to the bodycam footage.
“He was bringing me Christmas money. He didn’t do anything,” she shouted.
___
Seewer reported from Toledo. Kantele Franko in Columbus and Mark Gillispie from Cleveland contributed.