A 12-year-old boy shot by police after apparently grabbing what turned out to be a replica gun has died from his wounds, a day after officers responded to an emergency call about a someone waving a “probably fake” gun at a playground.
One officer on Sunday fired twice after the boy pulled the fake weapon which was lacking the orange safety indicator usually found on the muzzle from his waistband but had not pointed it at police, Deputy Chief Ed Tomba said.
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.
The Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner identified the boy as Tamir Rice. An attorney for his family, Timothy Kucharski, said the boy went to the park with friends on Sunday afternoon, but he did not know the details of what led to the shooting.
“I don’t want to make a rush to judgement,” he said.
The police department is investigating the shooting and both officers involved have been placed on administrative leave, which is standard procedure. The county prosecutor’s office also is investigating.
Kucharski said he wants to talk to witnesses himself and get more facts.