Officer who fatally shot Tamir Rice fired from West Virginia ranger position

Key Highlights

• The district’s board announced Loehmann’s firing in a statement following their emergency meeting. A Cleveland-based attorney for Rice’s family, Subodh Chandra, said that “Loehmann’s determination to inflict himself on other people seems pathological.
• So does the craven poor judgment required by any public officials who hire him.”Rice, who was Black, was playing with a pellet gun outside a recreation center in Cleveland on 22 November 2014, when he was shot and killed by Loehmann seconds after the officer and his partner arrived.
• The white officers told investigators Loehmann had shouted three times at Rice to raise his hands. The shooting sparked an outcry about police treatment of Black people and systemic racism, especially after a grand jury decided not to indict Loehmann or his partner. Cleveland settled a lawsuit over Rice’s death for $6m.
• The city fired Loehmann for having lied on his application to become a police officer. Loehmann landed a part-time position with a police department in south-east Ohio in 2018.
• He withdrew his application days later after Rice’s mother and others criticized the hiring. He was sworn in as the lone police officer in Tioga, Pennsylvania, in 2022 – and also left amid backlash following his hiring. Last year, he resigned from his position as a probationary officer in White Sulphur Springs City, West Virginia, and the police chief responsible for hiring him stepped down. Explore more on these topicsTamir RiceUS policingnewsShareReuse this content.