Why Did It Take 137 Bullets for Cops to Kill Two Unarmed Suspects in Cleveland?

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Alexander Abad-Santos 7,671 Views Dec 5, 2012

All 13 officers involved in the killing of Timothy Russell and Malissa Williams have been placed on administrative leave while everyone figures out why officers needed 137 bullets to kill the unarmed Russell and Williams, and why two false reports of shots being fired may have prompted all of this. The solid facts that we do have are frustratingly slim: there was a 25-minute car chase; two unidentified Cleveland police officers falsely said there were shots being fired from Russell and Williams's vehicle; more than 30 officers were involved in the chase; and 13 officers fired 137 rounds at Russel and Williams—47 of those hit and killed the two suspects. And there's this kicker from The Huffington Post's Andrew Juaregui: "Police reported that no gun was found in the suspects' car. East Cleveland Police detective Scott Gardner told WEWS that preliminary investigation revealed no evidence that the suspects had exchanged fire with police." 

It's important to remember that Williams and Russell were doing things law-abiding citizens don't: they were fleeing from police and were in a high-speed chase. But still, the 137 shots and excessive force have police stumped, not as stumped as the Twitterverse...

... but stumped enough to ask Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigations for help. "The 13 officers involved will undergo internal interviews," reports Cleveland's 19 Action News, while Juaregui reports they have been placed on administrative leave during the investigation. 

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