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Columbus mayor requests federal probe of police force
Source: Associated Press
Columbus mayor requests federal probe of police force
By FARNOUSH AMIRI and ANDREW WELSH-HUGGINS
April 28, 2021
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — While Ohio’s capital city has made significant progress enacting changes to its police department, the city needs additional help because of “fierce opposition” to reform within the agency, city leaders said Wednesday as they requested a Justice Department investigation following a series of police killings of Black people and other controversies.
The request by Mayor Andrew Ginther and City Attorney Zach Klein — both Democrats — capped several painful months for the city, culminating most recently with the April 20 fatal shooting of 16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant as she swung a knife at a woman. Bryant was Black and the rookie officer who shot her was white.
Criticism has included not just fatal police shootings but also the department’s reaction to last summer’s protests over racial injustice and police brutality following the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. A report commissioned by city council and released earlier this week criticized both the police department and city leaders, saying Columbus was unprepared for the size and energy of the protests.
“This is not about one particular officer, policy, or incident; rather, this is about reforming the entire institution of policing in Columbus,” Ginther and Klein said in Wednesday’s letter. “Simply put: We need to change the culture of the Columbus Division of Police.”
-snip-
By FARNOUSH AMIRI and ANDREW WELSH-HUGGINS
April 28, 2021
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — While Ohio’s capital city has made significant progress enacting changes to its police department, the city needs additional help because of “fierce opposition” to reform within the agency, city leaders said Wednesday as they requested a Justice Department investigation following a series of police killings of Black people and other controversies.
The request by Mayor Andrew Ginther and City Attorney Zach Klein — both Democrats — capped several painful months for the city, culminating most recently with the April 20 fatal shooting of 16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant as she swung a knife at a woman. Bryant was Black and the rookie officer who shot her was white.
Criticism has included not just fatal police shootings but also the department’s reaction to last summer’s protests over racial injustice and police brutality following the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. A report commissioned by city council and released earlier this week criticized both the police department and city leaders, saying Columbus was unprepared for the size and energy of the protests.
“This is not about one particular officer, policy, or incident; rather, this is about reforming the entire institution of policing in Columbus,” Ginther and Klein said in Wednesday’s letter. “Simply put: We need to change the culture of the Columbus Division of Police.”
-snip-
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/death-of-george-floyd-shootings-4c3df9b072f75693ec248f41a0ba5220
