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Officer Ray Tensing, left, is accused of killing Samuel DuBose during a routine traffic stop. (Photo: WCPO)
'Without Question A Murder': Ohio Cop Indicted for Killing Black Man During Traffic Stop
University of Cincinnati officer will face murder charges in the shooting death of Samuel DuBose
Jul 29, 2015
A white University of Cincinnati police officer was indicted Wednesday on a murder charge for fatally shooting Samuel DuBose, who is black, during a traffic stop on July 19.
"This is without question a murder," Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters said at a news conference announcing the charges against Officer Ray Tensing. "He purposefully killed him... He should never have been a police officer."
The decision came after 12 Hamilton County citizens reviewed evidence all day Monday as part of a grand jury investigation into the incident, which occurred when Tensing pulled over DuBose for a missing front license plate.
Footage from Tensing's body camera, also released Wednesday, "shows a routine traffic stop turning suddenly violent when DuBose leans toward the passenger seat and Tensing fires a single shot into his head," the Cincinnati Enquirer reports. "DuBose did not appear to be belligerent or aggressive before the officer fired."
"Some people want to believe Mr. DuBose did something violent toward the officer," Deters said. "He did not. He did not at all."
According to WCPO Cincinnati, Tensing has turned himself in.
DuBose, who was 43 when he died, was buried on Tuesday. His last words were, "I didn't even do nothing."
People across the state and country are reacting to the indictment on Twitter:
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Deirdre Fulton is a former Common Dreams senior editor and staff writer. Previously she worked as an editor and writer for the Portland Phoenix and the Boston Phoenix, where she was honored by the New England Press Association and the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. A Boston University graduate, Deirdre is a co-founder of the Maine-based Lorem Ipsum Theater Collective and the PortFringe theater festival. She writes young adult fiction in her spare time.
A white University of Cincinnati police officer was indicted Wednesday on a murder charge for fatally shooting Samuel DuBose, who is black, during a traffic stop on July 19.
"This is without question a murder," Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters said at a news conference announcing the charges against Officer Ray Tensing. "He purposefully killed him... He should never have been a police officer."
The decision came after 12 Hamilton County citizens reviewed evidence all day Monday as part of a grand jury investigation into the incident, which occurred when Tensing pulled over DuBose for a missing front license plate.
Footage from Tensing's body camera, also released Wednesday, "shows a routine traffic stop turning suddenly violent when DuBose leans toward the passenger seat and Tensing fires a single shot into his head," the Cincinnati Enquirer reports. "DuBose did not appear to be belligerent or aggressive before the officer fired."
"Some people want to believe Mr. DuBose did something violent toward the officer," Deters said. "He did not. He did not at all."
According to WCPO Cincinnati, Tensing has turned himself in.
DuBose, who was 43 when he died, was buried on Tuesday. His last words were, "I didn't even do nothing."
People across the state and country are reacting to the indictment on Twitter:
Deirdre Fulton
Deirdre Fulton is a former Common Dreams senior editor and staff writer. Previously she worked as an editor and writer for the Portland Phoenix and the Boston Phoenix, where she was honored by the New England Press Association and the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. A Boston University graduate, Deirdre is a co-founder of the Maine-based Lorem Ipsum Theater Collective and the PortFringe theater festival. She writes young adult fiction in her spare time.
A white University of Cincinnati police officer was indicted Wednesday on a murder charge for fatally shooting Samuel DuBose, who is black, during a traffic stop on July 19.
"This is without question a murder," Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters said at a news conference announcing the charges against Officer Ray Tensing. "He purposefully killed him... He should never have been a police officer."
The decision came after 12 Hamilton County citizens reviewed evidence all day Monday as part of a grand jury investigation into the incident, which occurred when Tensing pulled over DuBose for a missing front license plate.
Footage from Tensing's body camera, also released Wednesday, "shows a routine traffic stop turning suddenly violent when DuBose leans toward the passenger seat and Tensing fires a single shot into his head," the Cincinnati Enquirer reports. "DuBose did not appear to be belligerent or aggressive before the officer fired."
"Some people want to believe Mr. DuBose did something violent toward the officer," Deters said. "He did not. He did not at all."
According to WCPO Cincinnati, Tensing has turned himself in.
DuBose, who was 43 when he died, was buried on Tuesday. His last words were, "I didn't even do nothing."
People across the state and country are reacting to the indictment on Twitter:
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