COLUMBUS – Charges against the Columbus police officer accused of fatally shooting Andre Hill will be heard by the city’s public safety director Monday morning, which may lead to the officer’s firing.
After an expedited investigation into departmental charges alleging critical misconduct, Chief Thomas Quinlan last week recommended Ofc. Adam Coy be fired.
In a statement released on Christmas Eve, Quinlan rejected any criticism that he might be rushing to judgment, saying video evidence from the officer’s body-worn camera was clear.
“I have seen everything I need to see to reach the conclusion that Officer Coy must be terminated,” he said in a video release.
Body-cam video shows Hill emerging from a garage and holding up a cellphone in his left hand seconds before he was fatally shot by an officer identified as Coy early Tuesday on Oberlin Drive.
About six seconds pass between the time Hill is visible in the video and when the officer fires his weapon. There is no audio because the officer hadn’t activated his body camera; an automatic “look back” feature captured the shooting without audio.
Quinlan said the departmental charges filed against Coy include unreasonable use of deadly force, failing to activate his body-cam until after the incident, and failing to administer aid to Hill as he lay on the ground.
Quinlan expressed heartbreak that Hill, 47, could not celebrate Christmas with his family.
“I cannot fathom the pain Andre Hill’s family is feeling right now. He was taken from them by violence, preventable violence, senseless violence,” Quinlan said.
Coy and other officers were responding to what had been a non-emergency call when a resident reported a man sitting in an SUV for an extended period of time, repeatedly turning the vehicle on and off, city officials said.
The preliminary investigation indicated Hill visiting someone at the home. A weapon was not recovered at the scene.
The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation is conducting the probe into the shooting under an agreement that requires the agency to investigate shootings involving Columbus officers.
Ginther said he has also asked the office of the U.S. Attorney to review the case to determine if the Hill’s civil rights were violated.