Recorded on police dash cam footage running over a gunshot victim with her patrol vehicle, an Ohio police officer has been placed on leave pending multiple investigations into the incident.
Around 11:15 p.m. on June 13, the Springfield Police Department began receiving calls of a shooting on Center Boulevard. Shortly after he had been shot by an unknown assailant, Eric Cole called the police to request immediate assistance.
According to her police dash cam footage, Officer Amanda Rosales arrived at the scene in a patrol SUV and had several seconds to observe Cole lying in the street with blood staining his white shirt. A second officer following Rosales’ vehicle also caught the moment on police dash cam video when she drove over Cole’s body.
The officers reportedly attempted to give Cole medical assistance before he was airlifted to a hospital. Shortly after midnight on June 14, Cole was pronounced dead. The Montgomery County Coroner’s Office will determine the cause and manner of Cole’s death.
On June 16, Springfield Police Chief Lee Graf gave a press conference explaining that Officer Rosales was unable to see Cole’s body because she was looking for street signs and addresses when she accidentally struck him with her vehicle. Chief Graf failed to explain why Rosales neglected to look forward while driving forward for several seconds.
“The lead officer was trying to catch addresses on the house. Eric was lying in the street,” Graf stated. “This was an accident. It doesn’t mean it’s OK. It was an accident. This was not an intentional act on the part of the officer. I am sure of that.”
According to city officials, the police have made no arrests in regards to Cole’s shooter. During the news conference, Cole’s mother, Regina Wilson, recalled, “He said, ‘Your son has just been shot.’ Never once was I told that an officer ran over my son. Why was I not told at the scene that she ran over my son?”
In an incident report, the police neglected to mention that the responding officer drove over the victim’s body when arriving at the scene. Graf attempted to explain that the vehicular accident is being investigated by the Ohio State Highway Patrol, while the shooting remains under police investigation. Graf failed to explain why the police incident report omitted the vehicular assault, which would be relevant to specific conditions and injuries within the upcoming autopsy report.
Hired in January 2020, Rosales was placed on paid leave Thursday pending multiple investigations into the incident.
“I want the officer held accountable just like if they get the suspect, they will hold him accountable,” Wilson told Graf.
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