Hundreds are expected to gather Tuesday in Columbus to honor the life of 47-year-old Andre Hill — known as “Dre” to friends and “Big Daddy” to his three grandchildren — after he was fatally shot by a white police officer days before Christmas.
The memorial service will take place at the First Church of God in southeast Columbus, where civil rights attorney Ben Crump is expected to issue a “call to action,” and Rev. Al Sharpton will deliver the eulogy.
The service will begin with a public viewing at 10 a.m. before Hill’s family holds a private service at the church.
Hill was killed by Columbus Police officer Adam Coy in the early morning of December 22. Coy and another officer were responding to a non-emergency call from the Cranbrook neighborhood in northwest Columbus, when they found Hill in a neighbor's garage, where he had been invited over.
Coy fatally shot Hill, who was unarmed, within seconds of encountering him. Late last month, the city's Public Safety Director fired Coy for unreasonable use of force, failing to activate his body camera and failing to provide medical aid.
The city is also considering charges against other officers at the scene who failed to activate their body cameras or provide aid – body camera footage from that morning shows police handcuffing an unresponsive Hill, interviewing neighbors and lingering around the scene for over five minutes before anyone attempted first aid.
“One of the core values of the Columbus Division of Police is compassion. And the body-worn camera video released today shows little evidence of that,” said Police Chief Tom Quinlan in a statement last week.
Hill's death is under criminal investigation by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation and Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, who has been appointed special prosecutor. The U.S. Attorney's Office is also reviewing the case for possible violations of federal civil rights laws.
Hill's family has called for murder charges to brought against Coy, and demanded the city fire other officers for their inaction after the shooting. No state or federal charges yet have been announced.
