A West Virginia police chief quit after being criticized for hiring the former Cleveland police officer who shot and killed 12-year-old Tamir Rice in 2014.
D.S. Teubert quit his job as head of the White Sulphur Springs Police Department on his own, and Mayor Kathy Glover told the City Council Monday evening that he had been demoted to patrolman.
About 370 miles away from Cleveland is White Sulphur Springs, which is in the southeast of West Virginia. About 2,220 people are living there.
Tim Loehmann killed Tamir in Cleveland on November 22, 2014, while reacting to a call of someone pointing a gun at people. Both Teubert and Glover were criticized for hiring Loehmann. Loehmann was fired from the Cleveland Police Department in 2017 for something that had nothing to do with the killing. He was not charged with anything. After a lot of criticism, Glover told everyone last week that Loehmann was leaving the White Sulphur Springs department. Teubert and Glover have not replied to multiple questions about when he will start working for them.
Glover had told NBC News before that Loehmann had been hired by Teubert at his request and suggestion to work for the city as a probationary police officer and an at-will worker. Glover also said that Loehmann had quit on July 1. It was the second time since he left Cleveland that Loehmann quit being a police officer.
Glover said that Deputy Chief Julian R. Byer Jr. was sworn in as the new White Sulphur Springs chief last Wednesday.
Glover said in a statement read at the meeting on Monday night that the chief of police was in charge of hiring, firing, and disciplining people in the department.
A video of the meeting that was shared online shows that she told the angry people there, “As mayor, I understand your outrage and emotional investment in this whole situation.”
She said that when Loehmann was hired, her name “did not engage any recollection.” She also said that she “trusted the results of the extensive requirements” for the job and the “due diligence of the department head when swearing him in.”
“When the last incident came to light, we responded as calmly, quickly, and professionally as we could to confirm the claims that were being made on social media and other platforms,” Glover said.
She said she had asked the city attorney to “review what little I knew,” and they suggested that she meet with Teubert on the morning of July 1. That’s when she looked at Loehmann’s information in the police department’s personnel file. Later that day, she met with Loehmann, who told her he was quitting right away.
Glover said, “Even though I didn’t know what was going on with the hiring, I still take responsibility as the leader of the city.” “This really shouldn’t have taken place.”
She also promised to change how the city hires police officers.
Glover said, “I agree that there are mistakes in the way we do things now. Those mistakes will be looked at and fixed going forward.” The Rice family, I’m truly sorry for the unwanted and pointless attention this matter has brought to all of you.
Ryan Lockhart, a member of the city council, suggested that the police department set up a public safety review board. It was “imperative” in his mind that the city “adapt and put something in place” to protect the people who lived there from what they had just seen.
This should protect our town and citizens from the dangers that everyone saw during the last few weeks with the Officer Loehmann case, he said. “This means that something this big will never happen again.”
Lockhart said that the review board would have three members who would act as a link between the city council and the city when it comes to hiring choices and punishments for police officers. He suggested that there should be three people on the board: the mayor at the time, a member of the city council, and a person at large chosen by the council. Along with the head, the board would be able to look over and approve all police hires, he said.
The city council agreed with his plan without a single objection.
While Loehmann and his partner at the time, experienced training officer Frank Garmback, arrived, Tamir was playing with a pellet gun outside of a recreation center. Loehmann then shot and killed Tamir. The person who called 911 said that it looked like the gun belonged to a child, but that information was never shared with Loehmann and Garmback. Tamir was Black. His death led to months of protests about how police treat Black people. Loehmann was fired by the Cleveland Police Department in May 2017, about three years after killing Rice. The department said that his 2013 application was incomplete.
Teubert has not responded to multiple requests for an interview or statement. In an interview with Cleveland.com, before either of them quit, he explained why he hired Loehmann. He told the news source that he had spent a year doing a background check and was surprised that the hire had gotten so much attention.
Teubert said, “As a person, I looked at the whole thing.” “I looked into it.” I looked into everything. Everything is just sad. When there’s a shooting, does any police person in the world have a chance? If they were shot, do they deserve to never work as a police officer again?
He also said he didn’t think Loehmann had done something bad.
“What crime did he plead guilty to?” It was Teubert. “I just want this to be fair for everyone.” I wouldn’t have hired him if I thought he had done anything illegal or wrong.
During the public comment part of the city council meeting, some people said they were upset that Loehmann was hired and didn’t trust Glover to lead.
Newsome, who is 39 years old, told Glover directly that she and Teubert should not have hired a man who killed a kid and given him a gun.
Newsome told her, “You should quit your job and let us choose a new mayor.”
A lot of people cheered when he spoke.
Glover didn’t answer right away when asked about the calls for her to quit on Wednesday.
Concerns were made about how Loehmann had passed a background check by Sonia Brown, 67, another resident. Brown praised Lockhart for proposing the new public safety board.
Brown said, “Someone let us down.” “Our city could have been in a lot of trouble.”
Brown called the hire “a very egregious oversight” in an interview on Wednesday.
“I don’t think they hired him with the best interests of the people in mind,” she said.
