I’m somewhat surprised that we still haven’t reached the point where legislators are pushing police reform. Even if they’re unmoved by the loss of life, you would think they would grow tired of paying out millions over unnecessary deaths. Case in point: The city of Columbus, Ohio, has agreed to pay the family of André Hill $10 million.
According to WBNS, Hill was fatally shot last December by former Columbus Division of Police Officer Adam Coy. Coy and his partner were responding to a call about a suspicious vehicle and approached a garage where Hill was visiting a friend. While the officer’s body cameras weren’t turned on, a brief clip without audio shows Hill approaching the officer with his cell phone in his hand with his right hand not visible. Within seconds Coy shot Hill. After 10 minutes without receiving any aid, Hill was taken to a local hospital where he died.
Only days after the shooting, Coy was fired by the city and he’s currently facing charges of murder, felonious assault, and reckless homicide. The Columbus City Council will vote to approve the settlement on Monday, which is currently the largest amount the city has ever agreed to pay.
“We understand that because of this former officer’s actions, the Hill family will never be whole,” Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein said when announcing the settlement. “No amount of money will ever bring André Hill back to his family, but we believe this is an important and necessary step in the right direction.”
In addition to the payout, the city also agreed to rename a local gymnasium after Hill. The name change is expected to go into effect later this year.
“The Hill family and their legal team, attorneys Ben Crump, Richard W Schulte, & Michael Wright, want to thank the City of Columbus and its leaders for doing the right thing by agreeing to a financial resolution with the family and renaming the Brentnell Community Center Gymnasium after André Hill,” the attorneys representing Hill’s family said in a statement.
Earlier this year, the City Council passed a resolution called “André’s Law,” that requires police officers to turn on their body cameras when exiting their vehicle and to provide medical support while on the scene of an incident.