U.S.
Cory Schaffer / The Plain Dealer / AP
An investigation has been launched into the fatal police shooting of a 12-year-old Cleveland boy brandishing what turned out to be a toy airsoft gun, prompting calls for such weapons to be brightly colored or bear special markings to distinguish them from real firearms.
Tamir Rice died from his wounds Sunday, a day after officers responded to an emergency call about someone waving a "probably fake" gun at a playground.
The boy's father, meanwhile, has asked why officers didn’t use less lethal force, such as a taser, to subdue his son, whom he called a “respectful" child who wouldn't dare disobey or harm police.
The killing comes amid national debate over police tactics and use of force.
Deputy Chief Ed Tomba said one officer fired twice after the boy pulled the fake weapon from his waistband. The child did not point the imitation gun at police, but the fake lacked the orange safety indicator usually found on the muzzle of such toys.
The boy did not make any verbal threats but grabbed the replica handgun after being told to raise his hands, Tomba said. "That's when the officer fired," he said.
Police described the weapon as an airsoft gun that resembled a semi-automatic handgun. The orange safety indicator had been removed, police said.
Rice’s father, Gregory Henderson, said he thinks his son would be alive today had police reacted differently to the situation.
"Why not taze him? You shot him twice, not once, and at the end of the day you all don't shoot for the legs, you shoot for the upper body," he told the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
Ohio State Rep. Alicia Reece said Sunday she plans to introduce legislation that would require BB and airsoft guns to have brightly colored or have prominent fluorescent strips.
"This bill is but one small step in addressing this tragedy and helping to prevent future deadly confrontations with someone who clearly presents little to no immediate threat or danger," Reece said in a release.
The two Cleveland police officers involved in the shooting have been placed on administrative leave, which is standard procedure. The Plain Dealer reported that the officers are a first-year rookie and a 10-year department veteran.
The police department has collected surveillance video and other evidence and will present it to the county prosecutor's office, the newspaper said without citing a source. It said after reviewing the evidence prosecutors will present the case to a grand jury, which will decide whether the officer was justified in using force against the boy.
An attorney for the boy's family, Timothy Kucharski, said Tamir went to the park with friends Saturday afternoon, but he did not know the details of what led to his shooting.
Jeff Follmer, president of the Cleveland Police Patrolmen's Association, said the officers were not told the caller thought the gun might be fake. He also told The Plain Dealer that police aren’t trained to use less lethal force when they feel mortally threatened.
"We're not trained to shoot people in the leg," Follmer told the paper. "If we pull that trigger, we feel our lives are in danger."
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