Timothy Loehmann, the Cleveland police officer who shot and killed 12-year-old Tamir Rice in 2014, has withdrawn his application to become a part-time police officer in Bellaire, Ohio.
“As of this afternoon, Timothy Loehmann has withdrawn his application in Bellaire," Rice's mother Samaria Rice said during a news conference Wednesday afternoon. "Hopefully, he will not be hired as a police officer by any other state.”
Bellaire Police Chief Dick Flanagan confirmed to affiliate WTRF that Loehmann has withdrawn his application.
At 4 p.m., Samaria Rice and the Cleveland chapter of Black Lives Matter held a news conference to discuss the hiring of Timothy Loehmann. She said she learned just minutes before the news conference that Loehmann had withdrawn his application.
The Times Leader reported Bellaire’s police chief confirmed Friday he had hired Timothy Loehmann as a part-time officer.
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Flanagan said Loehmann was never charged in Tamir’s death and deserves a second chance.
Bellaire is a village of about 4,000 along the Ohio River, more than 150 miles (241 kilometers) south of Cleveland.
Tamir was playing with a pellet gun outside a recreation center in 2014 when he was shot by Loehmann.
A grand jury declined to indict Loehmann. He was fired last year after it was discovered he was previously deemed “unfit for duty.”
RELATED: Cleveland police officer Timothy Loehmann fired 2 1/2 years after fatally shooting Tamir Rice
