A Columbus, Ohio, police officer who was fired after fatally shooting an unarmed Black man in December has been arrested in connection with the killing, authorities said late Wednesday. Adam Coy, 44, faces charges of murder, felonious assault, and dereliction of duty after a grand jury brought an indictment against him Wednesday for the shooting of Andre Hill, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost announced in a Wednesday evening press conference. Coy had 19 years on the force when he responded to a complaint about a man sitting in an SUV in the early hours of Dec. 22. Coy and a fellow officer approached Hill in the garage of a home he was visiting, and after Hill appeared to hold up a phone, Coy opened fire. While Coy later claimed he thought Hill had a gun, his colleague, Officer Amy Detwiler, maintained that she “did not observe any threats” from Hill before the shooting. Hill, 47, was handcuffed by officers as he lay on the ground dying, and he did not receive aid for several minutes. Then-Columbus Police Chief Thomas Quinlan, in recommending Coy’s firing, called his actions “reckless and deliberate.” As The Daily Beast previously reported, Coy had racked up a slew of complaints against him during his time on the force, including one 2012 excessive force complaint that led to a payout.
