Cleveland police officer who killed Tamir Rice fired after rules violations

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Courtesy Rice Family(CLEVELAND) — The Cleveland, Ohio, police officer who shot and killed 12-year-old Tamir Rice in 2014 was terminated Tuesday morning after rules violations, the Cleveland Police Department announced Tuesday.

Officer Timothy Loehmann, who fatally shot Rice three years ago, was fired for inaccurate details on his job application and other administrative policies violations, not for the Rice shooting.

At a news conference Tuesday morning, Cleveland Police Chief Calvin Williams said that in 2015 the police department began looking through employment history during the hiring process, which it did not do when hiring Loehmann.

“Hopefully we won’t have any more incidents like this,” Williams said.

Disciplinary actions were also announced Tuesday against the officer who was with Loehmann at the scene of the Rice shooting. Officer Frank Garmback has been suspended for 10 days for a reason related to the shooting and must attend additional training, police said. Garmback’s 10-day suspension begins Wednesday.

Rice was shot and killed by Loehmann outside the Cudell Recreation Center in Cleveland, Ohio, on Nov. 22, 2014. Officers believed Rice was carrying a weapon, but it turned out to be a toy gun. A grand jury declined to indict Loehmann and Garmback.

Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Timothy McGinty said at the time that the law gives the benefit of the doubt to officers who must make “split-second” decisions when they believe their lives are in danger. Loehmann “had reason to fear for his life,” McGinty said, citing video he said was “indisputable” when it showed Tamir reaching for his gun as the police car approached and Loehmann exited.

Rice’s mother, Samira Rice, said Tuesday she is relieved that Loehmann was fired but believes Garmback should also have been terminated.

Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson offered his condolences to Rice’s family and said, “We’ve gone through an exhaustive process” in reviewing officers’ actions.

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