Tamir Rice Civil Rights Lawsuit Stalled, Funeral Delayed Five Months

Tamir Rice was shot and killed by two police officers in Cleveland more than five months ago. The relatives of the 12-year-old boy are pushing forward with a lawsuit against the police officers who shot their son after encountering him at a park waving what appeared to be a real gun.

The Cleveland police officers were called to the park after Tamir Rice was spotted waving what looked like a real gun but was actually an airsoft gun that shoots just plastic pellets. Samaria Rice, the boy’s mother, is upset that her son’s body has not been laid to rest. She moved into a homeless shelter because she said she could not stand to live so close to the spot where the shooting took place.

“It wasn’t good for her emotional health to remain in that location where she could see the killing field of her son,” Samaria Rice’s attorney, Walter Madison said. The attorney noted that Tamir Rice’s mother found a new home several weeks ago due to the “kindnes and support of other people.”

Cleveland police requested that the judge delay the Rice family’s civil rights lawsuit until the investigation into the fatal shooting is completed and the matter is heard in court. The family of Tamir Rice objects to the lawsuit delay request and argued that continuing on with the claim would not cause prejudice against the Ohio police officer and would enhance the legal costs and “emotional harm” of the Rice family.

Benjamin Crump, one of Samaria Rice’s lawyers, questioned the still pending nature of the Cleveland police investigation because the shooting was captured on video.

“Less than a second, my son is gone — and I want to know how long I got to wait for justice,” Tamir Rice’s mother stated at a press conference about the civil rights lawsuit.

An official from the Cleveland police union was quick to note that the officers had no way of knowin that the gun being waved was a toy. Crump also maintained that the Tamir Rice investigation has taken longer than the task force created by Governor John Kasich to look into community and police relations in the Buckeye State.

The Cuyahoga County prosecuting attorney told the media that the Tamir Rice case will ultimately be turned over to a grand jury for the possible filing of charges against the Cleveland police officers.

[Image via: Getty Images]