The shooting deaths of Timothy Russell and Malissa Williams, two Black American individuals, occurred in East Cleveland, Ohio on November 29, 2012, at the conclusion of a 22-minute police chase which started in downtown Cleveland, when police erroneously claimed shots were fired at them as Russell and Williams drove by a squad car; the cause of the shots was their vehicle's exhaust pipe backfiring.
Thirteen police officers surrounding the vehicle fired at Russell and Williams, who are unarmed, over 137 times while they were in their car at a parking lot of a middle school, killing both.
On January 26, 2016, it was reported that six Cleveland police officers were fired due to their connection with the car chase.
[1][2] Malissa Williams lived at the Norma Herr's Women Center on Payne Avenue in Cleveland.
According to The Plain Dealer, the chase went up to speeds of 100 mph and a total of 62 police cars were involved at one point.
[5][6][7][8] On May 30, 2014, only one officer of the thirteen who fired at the car, Michael Brelo, was indicted on two counts of voluntary manslaughter in connection with the shooting.
He was the only officer who continued to shoot even after the others stopped firing and was said to have actually moved forward and jumped onto the hood of Russel's car, after which he reportedly shot approximately fifteen rounds.
[15] The U.S. Department of Justice announced on May 24, 2015, that they would open an investigation in the deaths of Russell and Williams, and would review the testimony and evidence presented at Brelo's trial.
Trial for the five police officers that Cuyahoga County charged with misdemeanor dereliction of duty was set for July 27, 2015.
[22] In March 2018, two defense attorneys reported that prosecutors had offered to drop all charges against the officers if they paid fines of $5,000 each.
[25] In July 2018, the defendants asked the court to dismiss the charges, arguing that the more than 5½ years that had passed since the 2012 shooting violated their constitutional right to a speedy trial.
The Cleveland Division of Police continues to receive criticism from the public about the misdemeanor, claiming the actions were due to racism, as both fatalities were African-American.
After Brelo was acquitted, violent protests and unrest ensued in downtown Cleveland, which led to the arrests of at least 71 people as of May 25.
[28] The deaths of Russell and Williams were two of several killings of unarmed African Americans protested by the Black Lives Matter movement.
[28][29] The families of Russell and Williams filed a lawsuit against the city of Cleveland, claiming they were liable for the wrongful deaths of the two.