Demand for Special Prosecutor in Timothy Loehmann Case Backed Up By 200,000 Signatures

The central issue taken up by those protesting the county's handling of Tamir Rice's 2014 shooting death is an overarching demand for a special prosecutor in this case. The Rice family and many others have asserted that Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Timothy McGinty has "compromised" the grand jury process presently under way.

Today, a group of protesters delivered some 200,000 signatures in a petition backing up that demand.

Here's video shot this afternoon at the prosecutor's office:



And, in tandem, a statement from Law for Black Lives:

McGinty has not honored his obligations as a steward of justice. To the contrary, at every step of the process – from his refusal to call a grand jury for nearly a year, to his complete dismissal of an Ohio judge’s ruling that criminal charges should be brought, to his disrespectful comments about the family of Tamir Rice, to his reliance on and publication of dubious experts’ findings – he has acted defensively with regard to Officer Loehmann and Garmback’s use of force, and offensively against Tamir Rice’s family. We have little faith that McGinty will objectively and effectively seek justice in this case.

Yesterday, members of Tamir's family spoke at a vigil at Cudell Rec Center. While much of the afternoon was spent solemnly reflecting on memories of the 12-year-old's life, the central message communicated was the demand that McGinty step away from the case.