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Univ. of Cinci officer charged with murder

8K views 173 replies 62 participants last post by  SIXTO 
#1 ·
Ray Tensing, the now-former University of Cincinnati police officer charged Wednesday with murder for shooting Sam DuBose, is scheduled to be arraigned Thursday morning.

Tensing, 25, shot and killed DuBose during a traffic stop on Rice Street in Mount Auburn on July 19. A grand jury was convened in 10 days and Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters announced two charges during a Wednesday news conference - one count each for murder and voluntary manslaughter, Deters said.

The arraignment is scheduled for 10 a.m. in the Hamilton County Courthouse, 1000 Main St. in Downtown.

Local and national media were staging to cover the arraignment as early as 8 a.m. Thursday.
Arraignment today for officer charged with murder
 
#2 ·
Yes he was, and rightfully so. The Officer deserves what he is going to get.....
 
#5 ·
I saw this story yesterday. Good on the city for making sure the right thing happened.

These body camera's should be mandatory now. They are there for the police and for civilians. Without it I doubt they would have charged him. He lied about the whole situation right away knowing it wasn't a clean shoot.

I hope they show this for training new officers so they trully understand what can happen when that gun comes out.
 
#84 ·
These body camera's should be mandatory now.
Some studies have shown that civilian complaints go down as much as 80% when the cops are wearing the cameras. I think cops are more aware of their actions when wearing one. I'm pretty surprised at some of the things police have been caught doing on dash cams, cell phone videos, and body cameras.
 
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#15 ·
Haven't seen any videos, but did read a short news article last night. Seems the guy heading away was non-violent, not threatening folks, and was fired upon as he was leaving in his car. If that was the case, it seems the DA's right on track. Try that sort of behavior with someone else as a civilian and you're almost certainly going to face the same thing.

Hopefully all the actual facts will come out, and hopefully folks will do the right thing.

Sad, that someone had to die yet again, in apparently questionable circumstances. Bad deal for policing in general, given other apparently similar situations these past few years.

Condolences to the family.
 
#18 ·
I just watched that video and must agree with most of the posts above. This was in no way a necessary shooting. The officer only needed to step back about 2 feet to be completely clear of the car it was NOT life threatening, it was a simple case of the guy trying to run from the cops, not remotely violent. The guy may not have been a good person but shot in the head at point blank is not how he deserved to go. If you carry a weapon you have to know what it is truly for and that is ending a life. Use it accordingly.
 
#20 ·


South in a second. Bad decision. Worse one to lie about it. That said, if the driver grabbed his arm and started driving away (that isn't clear on the video) a jury could easily see that as an assault or attempted murder... It isn't quite as clear as the media is making it out to be, but a jury trial is definitely the right move.
 
#21 ·
I live a little north of Cincinnati and I have been following this case intently.

I agree that the officer should be charged and convicted, please don't infer different from my comments.

I see this as a bad shoot, either due to insufficient training or some kind of "mistake" on the the part of the officer. I think that it is proper to expect a higher standard from an LEO than this man displayed.

Having said that, let's add a little perspective.

This was not a racially motivated shooting. The LEO was not confrontational or condescending, he was not provoking the driver, he had a legitimate (although minor) reason to pull the guy over. He remained calm until the fatal moment.

The driver certainly has some responsibility here, he did not have a front plate, he was deceptive, and he had a bottle of Gin in the car. But most of all he made the decision to pull the car door closed, start his car and flee. I am NOT saying that he deserved to be shot, I am saying that during a traffic stop there is always shared responsibility by both LEO and the driver.

Even though most of us aren't LEO, this case reinforces the fact that we are all responsible for what happens with our firearms, and our lives can be changed forever in the instant that we pull the trigger.
 
#79 ·
Officer should have let the guy drive away, then get in his squad car, then pursue. Then push him off the road if necessary.

The guy was in violation for lack of front plate(say what you want, its still a state law)
The guy had a GIN bottle on the floor in front of him,
AND he was unable to produce a drivers license when asked to do so, 4-5 times,
AND he started the vehicle up and put it in gear to flee.

Should he have been shot right away? No, but he was obviously up to no good.

These idiots just seem to think that the requirement to obtain a drivers license, auto insurance, plates and everything else necessary for operating a motor vehicle applies to everyone else but them.
They seem to think that its ok to just disobey a peace officer, do whatever they want, and just leave when the situation doesn't suit them.

When is society going to begin to frown on this type of activity?
This, and so much more is happening on a daily basis, and I see no one calling for it to end, or reinforce the notion that these actions have consequences.
SteveB2175 did the stop take place on University Property?

What is up with campus cops? Back in my day all they did was tell us to "turn down the music" and "pour out that beer". Seriously, stick to taking bike theft reports and patrol to prevent campus rapes.

The requirement for a front plate varies from state to state. Most of these minor traffic violations are just an excuse for the cops to go fishing. Unfortunately these tend to happen to poor folk who cannot afford to keep up on car maintenance.

Look again, that bottle of Gin was sealed. It is not like he was:



I assume that the victim was unemployed since it was the middle of the day, probably driving his wife's car while suspended and was on his way home from a liquor store run to get his drink on. Not sure what part of that constitutes being up to no good?

Even though the cop was very polite, it looks like the victim felt threatened as if the cop was about to yank him from the car and go Sandra Bland on his ass. "Nope, not throwing me to the ground for a BS license plate, me and this here bottle of Gin are driving home. No arrest today" Too bad he was killed for being stupid. The theme for these recent cop shootings seems to be "I will arrest you, or kill you trying." Cops need to take their ego down a notch.

Nobody wants a trial. I am sure that they will go with the AD angle and take a deal for manslaughter, seven years maximum.
 
#22 ·


South in a second. Bad decision. Worse one to lie about it (that may doom him to a longer/harsher sentence if found guilty). That said, if the driver grabbed his arm and started driving away (that isn't clear on the video) a jury could easily see that as an assault or attempted murder... It isn't quite as clear as the media is making it out to be, but a jury trial is definitely the right move.
 
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#23 ·
We have been forced over years to lower our standards. This means were not getting the best Policeman, Firemen, Soldiers, Teachers . This is now rearing it ugly head in all these fields and others. .If people can't pass the high standards required for the job . Then its up to them to come up to the standards Not lower the standers because of sex or color of skin.
We must return the school to educating our children . Not the mindless cesspool they are today . Teachers need to dress professionally and student need a strict dress code also. Reading writing and real math should once more rule. Not Bobby has 2 mommies and that sex in 2nd grade ok . We need to stamp out the If it feels good do it attitude . School is for educating children Not brain washing them to latest feel good liberal program
 
#56 · (Edited)
That certainly has a lot to do with today's competency in the employment pool, not just in public service. It's gotten so bad an LE agency must either lower entrance expectations or just not hire enough. Not hiring enough to answer all the silly 911 calls is not acceptable to the public. So....you get lower standards. :ticking:
 
#25 ·
Sorry, but I have to agree this is murder not manslaughter. He knew that firing that gun into the guy was going to kill him and that is what he intended to do. There was no provocation on the victims part that led to the application of this deadly force.

Even if he is found to have been justified in the shooting (which would be a stretch), his pathological lying indicates that he has no business being in law enforcement.

Watching this incident and the previous one with the same officer, I have serious doubts if this guy was ever actually trained or whether he was just issued a gun and badge by the university and sent out on the unsuspecting public.
 
#26 ·
actually hearing the sides and watching the video… I don't think he should be found guilty of murder. The guy was driving without a license, in possession of drugs, and was afraid he was about to be caught, so when the officer was trying to take the keys, he hit the gas and sped off, with the cop still reaching inside, partially dragging him a few feet before he was able to get back and out. Hindsight is 20/20, and no the guy shouldn't have died for it, but at the time, the cop did what was needed to protect himself. The fault of the death is on the dead driver for basically attacking an officer with his car. The cop could have easily been knocked and dragged under the wheels and killed. I believe he was in fear for his life and acted justifiably.

If this had been a black cop and a white driver, it wouldn't even had made the news, and it would have been found justifiable.
 
#28 ·
Overall, campus police have less training, are paid less, and are just not as competent as municipal LEOs. When I was in college, they were sort of a joke that no one would call for anything serious. In that case, the school was within the city limits and the municipal PD had overlapping jurisdiction. For anything serious, they were called. The campus cops were called for things like over-loud parties...
 
#29 ·
This is a prime example why I'm against body cams; the public simply does not know how to react or see things objectively. They want to convict based on a very narrow view point. The video forced the prosecution to rush this due to political pressure, and they indicted a murder, when its clearly not. They knew that if murder wasn't billed, we'd have riots. Instead, they've enhanced the expectations of the public and will deliver the blow over the winter, making the impact of potential rioting much less. If one reads and understands Ohio law, this was at best a manslaughter and no where near the murder charge.

Now on to the incident itself; did the LEO make huge errors? You bet he did. Never ever reach into a car. Did DuBose make errors? Absolutely. He refused to comply with lawful orders, he refused to allow Tensing to open the door, he started the vehicle back up and started to drive away. All those lay right in the decedents lap of responsibility. Was he dragged? Doesn't appear so, but there is reality and perception. Tensing's hand was in the car. Was it caught in the belt? Did DuBose have a hold of him? I don't know, none of us do. But its interesting that Tensing is in one spot in the roadway during the altercation, then is much further down the road on the ground when the second video picks up.

My initial thought after watching the video for the first time is this was an AD. Let me run with that theory for a minute... If it was in fact an AD, it happened because of the action of two people acting stupidly. Not just one, two. Ones actions fed off the others. That is manslaughter. What makes it worse, is if the whole being drug thing was a lie. Again, I'm not ready to say it was an outright lie, but it appears to me that it is. A lie gives the appearance of murder- not good for the officer.
 
#37 ·
"They knew that if murder wasn't billed, we'd have riots." - Damn right !!

Sixto, you probably know better than I, but I have to believe that the UC Police are spitting fire right now. The prosecutor (Joe Dieters) threw them under the bus BIG TIME in order to deflect attention away from the Cincinnati Police. I don't think I've ever heard a public official denigrate another public entity the way Dieters flamed the UC Police.

There are a lot of serious issues in this case, but the current political environment is controlling every detail of how this case is being handled (and reported).
 
#30 ·
An AD? accidental discharge? he drew his weapon and pulled the trigger. This is exactly why we need the bodycams. This shooting would have been swept under the rug with people lying on reports. Now I wonder how many of these have been covered up over the years? His arm wasn't stuck. He wasn't dragged.

Cameras on balance, will help police with further evidence, and avoid bogus claims of excessive force etc...But in the this case, the camera captured a cop making a bad decision.

I'm not pro cop. I'm not anti cop. I am pro truth.
 
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