Two University of Cincinnati police officers who corroborated the flawed account of a third officer, charged with murder for shooting an unarmed black man during a traffic stop, have been placed on paid leave, according to local reports.
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A grand jury indicted Officer Ray Tensing on suspicion of murder and voluntary manslaughter this week for the fatal July 19 shooting of Samuel DuBose, whom Tensing had stopped for a missing license plate.
In the video, Kidd told another officer he saw Tensing getting dragged by DuBose’s auto – the reason Tensing said he shot the 43-year-old after stopping him for a missing front license.
Yet body camera video shows Tensing was not dragged, and that was reflected in Kidd and Lindenschmidt’s official statements in in-depth interviews with police, Deters said, noting their statements at the scene were not official.
Videos from their body cameras show both Kidd and Lindenschmidt at the scene, listening to Tensing say he was dragged and agreeing that’s what happened.
Deters said that his office was investigating a second officer who had backed Tensing’s version of the traffic stop. Brinson died and his family sued, ultimately settling with the police department and the hospital for $638,000. “He wasn’t dealing with someone who was wanted for murder”, Deters said.
Fired UC officer Ray Tensing later posted 10 percent of that amount and was released, the Hamilton County Court clerk’s website said.
Deters said Tensing should have let DuBose drive away.
“Ever since the bond was set, I’ve received calls from around the country from people wanting to contribute to it”, attorney Stew Mathews said.
Tensing is seen trying to open the door to the vehicle, refusing to call his supervisor and refusing to explain why he is attempting to arrest these men.
He described Tensing, who is due back in court August 19, as “very depressed” and “in shock at this point”, adding that Tensing had felt “like he’s been run over by a train from the start of this case and it continues”. A grand jury declined to indict Kidd and Lindenschmidt, prosecutors announced Friday.
“Did you see him being dragged?” a responding officer asks.
But the body camera footage shows something different, according to Deters.
“The contract language says that if you’re going to discipline an employee for anything that involves loss of pay, suspension, demotion or termination, the university is required to have a predisciplinary conference with the employee”.
Authorities have said Tensing noticed the auto driven by Mr DuBose didn’t have a front licence plate. “The case will be tried and decided in court”, Mathews said. Kidd and Lindenschmidt will remain on leave until the investigation is complete, said University of Cincinnati police spokeswoman Michele Ralston.
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The death DuBose is the latest in a string of controversial shootings where black people got killed by white cops that include Michael Brown in Ferguson, Tamir Rice in Cleveland and Walter Scott in North Charleston, South Carolina.
