Police are indicted for killing civilians just 3% of the time - even though 89% of grand juries return charges, because prosecutors can convince them to "indict a ham sandwich."
We saw one more killer cop walk when prosecutor Timothy J. McGinty refused to ask for charges against 12-year-old Tamir Rice's murderer.
Some killings are justifiable, but as recent news stories show, it's not 97%. Police are the only people who can legally kill us, so while we must be grateful for their sacrifices, we also need to hold them to a higher standard. Giving families justice by trial jury just 3% of the time is inexcusable.
One reason for the low indictment rate is that prosecutors have to work with police, and they don't want to ruin that relationship. That may be an understandable element of human nature, but it's also one we need to remove from our criminal justice system. No one is above the law.
No more families should suffer like Tamir's. It's time for Ohio to act - and Gov. Kasich is paying attention to national pressure, because he's running for president.
California has one possible solution: Ban the use of grand juries in police shootings. Ohio could also create a permanent statewide prosecutor to handle these cases instead of local governments, one without a conflict of interest. Or the state could create oversight boards with the power to indict.
Sign the petition for justice today: It's time for Ohio to remove biased local prosecutors from the police accountability process!
