Cuyahoga County Sheriff Clifford Pinkney held a press conference for the first time on the status of its investigation into the death of 12-year-old Tamir Rice who was shot by a Cleveland police officer over 5 months ago. The young boy was playing with a toy gun police claim they could not discern from a real one.
The department did not share any details of the investigation, but did notify the public that its investigation was nearly complete.
“While it would be politically expedient to provide a deadline, for the sake of the integrity of this investigation i’m not willing to do that,” said the sheriff on Tuesday morning. “That does not mean this investigation should drag on beyond what is reasonable,” he clarified.
"All parties involved know that my department is conducting a fair, impartial and thorough investigation — one that leaves zero stones unturned before turning it over to county prosecutor Tim McGinty," said Pinkney.
Pinkney did not take any questions and spoke for less than four minutes.
The Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s probe into the death of Freddie Gray took a much shorter time to complete notes Fusion’s Daniel Rivero: “Unlike the case of Freddie Gray, in which legal actions was brought so swiftly, the shooting of Rice was caught on camera.”
MSNBC’s Joy Reid is also perplexed by the sluggishness of the investigation. The reporter tweeted this out minutes after the press conference concluded:
According to a court filing from last Monday, the family of Tamir Rice has yet to bury their loved one. “Tamir Rice has yet to be laid to final rest.”
And today’s press conference does not bring the family any closer.
Collier Meyerson is a reporter at Fusion with a focus on race and politics. She lives in Brooklyn.