Cleveland officials say internal disciplinary letters have been sent to 13 police officers, charging them with administrative violations for their roles in the fatal pursuit of two unarmed suspects in November 2012.
The officers could receive disciplinary actions ranging from written warnings to termination. The administrative charges are based on a review by an internal committee formed after Timothy Russell and Malissa Williams, died in a barrage of police gunfire. The two led some 60 law enforcement vehicles on a high-speed chase across Cleveland that ended with thirteen officers firing 137 bullets, which killed the two suspects.
Those officers, with union representation, will attend disciplinary hearings in the office of the Director of Public Safety, Michael McGrath.
“We’ve broken it down to four dates in September for the disciplinary hearings," he said. "Once completed, then I’ll package it, review everything once again and I imagine somewhere… mid-October we’ll announce our results as far as the disciplinary hearings.”
The Cleveland Police Patrolman’s Association, says they have attorneys reviewing the charges ahead of the hearings.
Earlier this year, officer Michael Brelo was acquitted of voluntary manslaughter charges in the deaths of Russell and Williams. He was the only officer criminally charged in the incident.
