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.
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The University of Cincinnati Police announced on Thursday that the two officers were suspended with pay following the release of their body camera footage that documented the incident.
Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters scoffed at Tensing’s claim that he was dragged by DuBose’s auto, saying the officer “purposely killed him”.
Later in the video, another officer asks Kidd if he saw Tensing being dragged and he says “yes”. Body camera video shows Tensing shoot DuBose in the head during a July 19 traffic stop in Mount Auburn.
Tensing’s attorney has said Tensing thought he was going to be dragged under DuBose’s auto.
Two other university officers who responded to the scene-Kidd and Eric Weibel-have been placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation.
Deters acknowledged there was “confusion over the way the initial incident report was drafted”, but noted that it wasn’t a sworn statement.
The officer’s bail has been set at $1 million.
Former St. Louis County Police Chief Tim Fitch believes the prosecution of officers may just be to pleas or quiet an mad community.
We went through the first 25 seconds of this video frame by frame, trying to pinpoint where Officer Tensing was when Officer Kidd and Officer Lindenschmidt arrived.
“I didn’t even do nothing”, he can be heard telling Tensing.
Mathews said there are “two sides” to the case and that the much-viewed video of the traffic-stop shooting can be interpreted differently than the prosecutor’s version.
“People who watch an encounter on video using the slow motion setting to determine what happened have a luxury that police on the street don’t”, Bruce Szilagyi, chairman of the Fraternal Order of Police, said in a statement on Thursday. “The case will be tried and decided in court”, Mathews said. Deters said he thinks it is a “good idea” for police to wear body cameras, “because nine times out of 10 it clears [officers] of wrongdoing”. John Minchillo/AP Former University of Cincinnati police officer Ray Tensing appears at Hamilton County Courthouse for his arraignment Thursday.
On Wednesday, a grand jury indicted Tensing for murder. After being hired by the University of Cincinnati, he continued serving as a part-time officer for the Greenhills police force for eight months.
Authorities have said Tensing noticed the auto driven by DuBose didn’t have a front license plate.
Dubose calmly asks why he was pulled over and eventually tells Tensing that he left his licence at home. Deters added. “And he didn’t do anything violent towards the officer”.
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More than 550 people have been shot and killed by officers this year, according to a Washington Post database, and Tensing is the fourth officer to face charges.
