Cincinnati Police Chief Teresa Theetge addressed the media Monday after videos of a fight in Downtown Cincinnati went viral over the weekend.
Five people have been charged with “more anticipated,” according to Theetge.
What exactly kicked off the altercation is murky, and Theetge did not clarify beyond saying alcohol played "a significant part" in the fight.
The most widely circulated videos posted to social media — including by mayoral candidate and half-brother of VP Vance Cory Bowman — show a man being knocked to the ground and repeatedly kicked by multiple assailants. In other video snippets, purportedly from earlier in the altercation, that man is seen slapping another man. Still other videos show the man and other men squaring up for a fight, with both sides throwing punches at each other.
Later in the viral videos, another man is seen punching a woman in the face after the man who was attacked gets up. The woman is seen pushing one of the man's attackers, then gets hit from behind by another woman. Then another man punches her in the face. The woman seems to lose consciousness as she crumples to the ground.
Videos showing the man being beaten have gotten attention at the national level from the likes of Vice President JD Vance and Ohio U.S. Senator Bernie Moreno.
Theetge says the video taken at the intersection of 4th and Elm streets does “not depict the entire incident.” She admonished the media for its coverage of the video, as well as those who have posted it to social media without context.
“It just shows one side of the equation without context, without factual context, and then it grows legs and becomes something bigger,” she said, though she declined to elaborate, citing the ongoing investigation.
Theetge says investigators are reviewing the video to identify suspects and all possible charges are on the table. She says those involved had left the scene by the time police arrived. The charges filed in relation to the incident so far are sealed.
City leaders react
Theetge had strong words for those filming or witnessing the interaction who did not call police. She said officers could have intervened if police had been called sooner.
“One person did the right thing and called 911,” Theetge said. That person called 911 at 3:06 a.m., according to Theetge. Officers who were already in the Central Business District arrived at 3:12 a.m., Theetge said. She attributed the response time to heavy traffic in the area.
More than 100,000 people were Downtown for various events, Theetge said.
Mayor Aftab Pureval in a statement says he's “outraged,” and called the video “horrifying.”
“You have heard me for over a year now talk about holding our juveniles in this city accountable for their behavior, and trying to hold their parents accountable for knowing how their kids are behaving,” Theetge said to media gathered Monday. “What should we expect from our youth if this is the kind of adult behavior that is setting an example for them?”
Theetge said a new special roving task force CPD formed earlier this summer to address a spike in violent crime was Downtown, but only until 2 a.m., before the altercation took place.
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