Prosecutor: Judge makes errors in acquitting Cleveland officer
CLEVELAND – While acknowledging he can’t appeal an acquittal, an Ohio prosecutor said a judge made serious errors before finding a Cleveland police officer not guilty in the deaths of two suspects, and he wants an appeals court to order the judge to correct the record.
Cuyuhoga County Assistant Prosecutor Timothy McGinty says in court documents posted on The Plain Dealer website the judge’s reasoning in the trial of Officer Michael Brelo could become legal precedent and would “endanger the public.”
McGinty said Brelo’s acquittal in the 2012 deaths of Malissa Williams and Timothy Russell in a barrage of police bullets was based on the judge’s mistaken analysis of laws concerning police use of deadly force and other aspects of the case.
Brelo’s case is one of many nationwide that sparked protest over deadly police confrontations.