Tamir Rice’s Mom Breaks Silence, Says Daughter Detained By Cleveland Police

Tamir Rice’s mom, Samaria Rice, has broken her silence about the fatal police shooting. The mourning mother says she is “looking for a conviction” of the Tim Loehmann, the Cleveland police officer who shot and killed her 12-year-old son. Rice also claims that her 14-year-old daughter was detained by the police moments after Tamir was shot. The Rice family has filed a wrongful death suit against the two police officers who confronted the young man in the park.

Samaria Rice alleges that the Cleveland police officers who shot her son “tackled and handcuffed” her 14-year-old daughter and threatened to put her in the back of the police cruiser if she “didn’t calm down.” Tamir Rice reportedly got the toy gun he was waving in the park and Cleveland police officers thought was real, from a friend – according to his mother.

During the first public appearance of Tamir Rice’s mother since the fatal police shooting, she said two boys knocked on her door and told her that her 12-year-old son has been shot twice. “I noticed the police weren’t doing anything. I arrived the same time the ambulance did. Tamir was a bright child, he had a promising future, and he was very talented in all sports – soccer, basketball, football. He played the drums, he drew, he played video games, he’s a great swimmer. He was my baby.”

The mother of Tamir Rice spoke at a Monday morning press conference held at the Olivet Institutional Baptist Church in Cleveland. Samaria Rice was joined by the Reverend Jawanza Colvin. The Baptist pastor called for the immediate resignation of former Cleveland Police Chief Martin Flask and Michael McGrath, the city’s current safety director.

Reverend Jawanza Colvin said a 21-month Department of Justice investigation revealed “systemic deficiencies” in the Cleveland Police Department’s use of deadly force policies and training. According to Colvin, the DOJ report also concluded that the department needs new leadership. “It has become apparent to us that there is not the ability to implement necessary reforms,” the pastor added during the Tamir Rice press conference.

The Tamir Rice family’s wrongful death lawsuit also claimed that Cleveland police officers waited four minutes before providing any medical air to the young man after he was shot. “Police officers are supposed to deescalate not escalate situations,” family attorney Tim Kucharski said.

The Tamir Rice wrongful death lawsuit also alleges that the Cleveland police officers had the chance to “safely initiate their encounter from a safe distance but instead stopped their cruiser immediately next to young Tamir.”

What do you think of the Tamir Rice shooting and the wrongful death lawsuit filed by Samaria Rice against the Cleveland police?

[Image via: Twitter]