Varun Nayar speaks with Teen Vogue‘s Alli Maloney about a recent story she wrote for PSmag.com, “Henry Green, the Columbus Police, and the Jumpout Boys: How Racism Becomes Institutionalized in Police Departments.” During the interview, Maloney discusses the city’s troubled history with racism and police violence, biased hiring practices, and what potential remedies there may be for the ongoing problems within the CPD.
Below, an excerpt of the story, the full version of which is available here:
On June 6th, 2016, in Columbus, Ohio, 23-year-old Henry Green, and a friend, Christian Rutledge, were walking toward the house where Green lived with his aunt, when a white SUV with blackened windows abruptly swerved in their direction.
From the car, two white men in casual clothes, one in camouflage cargo shorts and the other dressed in all black, jumped out with guns drawn. Before he could identify Columbus Division of Police officers Jason Bare and Zachary Rosen as law enforcement, 24-year-old Rutledge claims he heard one ask, “You gonna pull a gun on me, motherfucker?” He saw no badges. Shots rang out.
Henry, struck seven times, fell to the ground. His neighbor, Jamar Jordan, saw his friend fight for life on the sidewalk and told him to focus, to try and stay present. Others started to crowd. In a video taken by a bystander just after the shooting, police move about quickly and Jamar can be seen pacing yards behind Henry, who is on the ground in handcuffs, being given CPR while his blood pools.
Rutledge was arrested and held for five hours without knowing the fate of his friend—known to friends and family simply as Bub. Bub’s family rushed to the hospital, where he was taken and pronounced dead just over an hour after the officers shot him. Additional police were called to the site of the shooting, then more were sent to the hospital because relatives there “were upset,” according to police spokesperson Rich Weiner. Bub’s parents were never allowed to see his body.
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