Cop Who Killed Black Man in Bed Retires in 'Bad Standing'

UPDATE Mar 4, 2023 10:45 AM CST

The Columbus, Ohio, police officer who fatally shot an unarmed Black man in bed last August is no longer on the force. The Columbus Division of Police announced Friday that Ricky Anderson, a 30-year veteran of the department, had retired in bad standing, due to the ongoing criminal and administrative probes surrounding the death of 20-year-old Donovan Lewis, reports WBNS. A police rep tells NBC4 that the "bad standing" part means Anderson can't leave with his CPD badge or gun. In a statement, the attorney for Lewis' family calls the department's announcement "cowardly," as the family had wanted Anderson fired. "This family deserves so much better," the statement notes. We will be steadfast in our pursuit of justice for Mr. Lewis and his family." His family has filed a wrongful-death suit against Anderson and other Columbus cops.

Sep 1, 2022 10:29 AM CDT

Police in Columbus, Ohio, have released body camera video showing an officer fatally shooting an unarmed Black man—in his bed. At a Tuesday press conference, Columbus Police Chief Elaine Bryant said 20-year-old Donovan Lewis was shot inside an apartment at 2am Tuesday as officers served a felony warrant for domestic violence, assault, and improper handling of a firearm, per CNN. The warrant applied to Lewis, who was charged last month following an alleged assault on his pregnant girlfriend, reports the Columbus Dispatch. Complaints dating back to 2020 allege he punched multiple women, including his mother, per WBNS. In Tuesday's incident, video shows officers knocking on the door and called out to those inside the apartment unit for more than eight minutes before a man came to the door.

He was taken into custody, followed by a second man. Officer Ricky Anderson, a 30-year veteran assigned to the K9 Unit, then arrived to ascertain whether anyone else was inside the apartment. After shouted warnings that a K9 would be set loose, the dog barked outside a bedroom door, which Anderson, accompanied by two other officers, opened. In a second—or what Lewis' family describes in a statement as "literally the blink of an eye"—Anderson fired a shot at Lewis, who was on a bed, striking him in the abdomen. Bryant said Lewis had something in his hand, which turned out to be a vape pen. "Stop resisting. He's pulling away," an officer said while attempting to handcuff Lewis, who was moaning on the bed. Officers then carried him outside and rendered aid.

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He was taken to an area hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 3:19am, police said. In their statement, Lewis' family—who were set to attend a Thursday press conference—noted "three white officers accompanied by an aggressive K9 dog shot an unarmed 20-year-old in cold blood as he sat up in his bed in compliance with police commands," per WSYX. But "rest assured, we will get justice for Donovan." Anderson has been placed on leave amid a probe by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation. Bryant noted officers are regularly "put in compromising, potentially life-threatening situations in which we are required to make split-second decisions," per CNN. She added, "If they do something wrong, they will be held accountable." (More police shooting stories.)