Unarmed Black man’s killing flares fresh outrage in US

COLUMBUS: The fatal shooting of an unarmed Black man by police in Columbus, Ohio -- the US city´s second such killing this month -- sparked a fresh wave of protests on Thursday against racial injustice and police brutality in the country. Andre Maurice Hill, 47, was in the garage of a house on Monday night when he was shot several times by a police officer who had been called to the scene for a minor incident. Seconds before the gunfire, bodycam footage shows Hill walking towards the policeman holding a cell phone in his left hand, while his other hand cannot be seen.

Columbus police chief Thomas Quinlan announced Thursday that he was moving to fire the officer, Adam Coy, on allegations of "critical misconduct".

"We have an officer who violated his oath to comply with the rules and policies of the Columbus Division of Police," Quinlan said. "This violation cost an innocent man his life." According to local media reports, Coy had previously received complaints of excessive force. Coy and his colleague waited several minutes before approaching Hill, who was still alive, but died later.

Hill, the second African-American killed by police in Columbus in less than three weeks, was not carrying a weapon.

Casey Goodson Jr, 23, was shot several times on December 4 while returning home. His family has said he was holding a sandwich which law enforcement mistook for a gun. Several dozen protestors gathered Thursday, waving Black Lives Matter signs and calling for justice for people killed in police shootings.

The killings in Columbus come after a summer in which the US was rocked by historic protests against racial injustice and police brutality, sparked by the May killing of African-American George Floyd. "Once again officers see a Black man and conclude that he´s criminal and dangerous," said lawyer Ben Crump, who defends several families of police brutality victims including Floyd.