CORRECTS NAME FROM TYREE KING TO TYRE KING -Columbus Mayor Andrew J. Ginther talks during a news conference about the police shooting of a 13-year-old boy who pulled a BB gun from his waistband just before he was shot and killed by police investigating an armed robbery report, on Thursday, Sept. 15, 2016 in Columbus, Ohio. According to authorities, the officers were briefed about a group of people, including one with a gun, who demanded money at about 7:42 p.m. ET.
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In King’s death, detectives retrieved the weapon from the scene of the shooting and later determined it was a BB gun, which shoots small round pellets, with an attached laser, police said.
Police say they found three people nearby who matched the descriptions the man gave them, two of whom ran away and were chased into an alley. Upon seeing the gun – which they claimed to not realize was a BB gun – one Officer Bryan Mason fired on King, shooting him multiple times. Tyree King was just 13 years old when he was shot and killed by police officers in Columbus, Ohio on September 14.
The other individual who ran off with King was brought in for questioning and later released.
“Officers carry a gun that looks practically identical to this weapon”, police chief Kim Jacobs said at a news conference. A police officer shot him multiple times.
Police later established that the boy had actually been carrying a BB gun – a type of sporting air gun that is created to shoot pellets – with an attached laser sight.
The Columbus Police Department said it will investigate the shooting.
Tyre was a “typical 13-year-old” who played football, soccer, hockey and gymnastics, said Walton.
“The only thing similar in nature is the age, race and outcome”, Columbus police spokesman Sgt.
He added that non of the responding officers were wearing body cameras. “Some of the officers at the scene were very disturbed about the fact that here we are out at this time of the night chasing [apparently] armed 13-year-olds”.
The lawyers said allegations about King can not be considered fact until there’s a “thorough, unbiased investigation”.
He urged calm and patience as police investigation and King’s family grieves.
The officers involved will receive mandated psychological counseling.
The officer will be placed on administrative leave for at least a week, and will need to see a psychologist before being allowed to return to duty, Jacobs said. He also described King as a “normal 13-year-old” and that the actions described by police “are out of his normal character”. That woman on the phone apparently dialed 911 for the alleged robbery victim, who told police he wasn’t going to bother calling – until the woman did it for him – because the teens had only stolen $10.
The incident is under investigation.
Police say a 13-year-old boy who was fatally shot by an OH officer after a chase had a pellet gun that looks like a real police firearm.
“I will not let an officer out on the street to perform their job if I do not trust them”, she said.
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“First off, what we know is the boy had a toy gun, if he had a gun at all”, said Anthony Edgecombe, a resident of Columbus.
