Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson told reporters the city was making a formal apology to Tamir Rice’s family and the people of Cleveland for the wording in the legal filing of the 12-year-old boy’s death, which said the death of Tamir, who was shot by police in November, was the sixth grader’s own fault. “We did something that… is hurtful to the family, that is disrespectful to them and the victim as well as the city of the Cleveland,” Jackson said.“I accept Jackson’s apology for what it was. A PR stunt. Plain and simple. It would have been better if the police officer had apologized for killing a 12-year-old,” said Dom Lacroix, a junior majoring in biology. Though Jackson pushed for an immediate rewording of the legal filing, Benjamin Crump, an attorney for the Rice family, said the mayor’s apology didn’t go far enough. Cleveland police officer Timothy Loehmann fired the fatal shots at Tamir in November. Reports said shots were fired not more than two seconds after arrival at a playground where Tamir was playing with a pellet gun. Tamir’s mother, Samaria Rice, told CNN, “They never even gave him a chance. The whole world has seen the same video like I've seen, and I'm sure the whole world is saying, 'You guys never gave him a chance.' With that being said, it can never be justified."Cuyahoga County’s medical examiner has ruled the death of Tamir Rice a homicide but has issued no statement determining the events leading to Tamir’s death a crime or not. “I’m tired of finding out another person who looks like me was killed. I’m tired and my people are tired,” said Talaya Banks, a freshman majoring in psychology. In the response to the Rice family’s lawsuit, the city said Tamir’s injuries, “were directly and proximately caused by the failure of Plaintiffs' decedent to exercise due care to avoid injury.” Furthermore, the response said, Plaintiffs' decedent's injuries, losses, and damages complained of, were directly and proximately caused by the acts of Plaintiffs' decedent, not this Defendant." “I believe there are good people who are good cops. But the term “good cop” is an oxymoron. The two cannot exist in the same place in this country,” commented Megan Hill, a senior majoring in communications from Providence, RI. "The Rice family maintains that Tamir was shot and killed unnecessarily by Cleveland police officers," Rice family co-counsel Walter Madison said in a statement. "Their tactics that preceded his death and the subsequent victim blaming are examples of the institutionalized behavior that has beset the Cleveland Police Department. The Rice family's lawsuit seeks to eliminate certain institutional behaviors and practices that have no place in our diverse community."According to Democracy Now! News reports, a White House task force has been assigned to calling to action a series of reforms in policing tactics, including increased transparency and further investigation into fatal shootings.Uploaded March 10, 2015
Writer: Morgynne Tora
