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Appeals Court Rules 2011 Cincinnati Police Shooting Was Justified

Cincinnati Police

A federal appeals court has upheld dismissal of a lawsuit against a Cincinnati police officer who fatally shot a black youth during a 2011 confrontation.  

The Cincinnati-based 6th U.S. Circuit of Appeals agrees that officer Oscar Cyranek's "split-second decision" to use deadly force wasn't unreasonable.  According to court records, police responded to several calls about teens with guns at a riverside park festival.  Surveillance video shows Cyranek confronting Mullins and struggling to subdue the teen. The mother of 16-year-old Davon Mullins sued in 2012, charging wrongful death, negligence, assault and battery by the officer for firing two shots after Mullins had thrown his gun aside.  The judge called the shooting "an unfortunate tragedy," and wrote that Cyranek made a mistake that was "a reasonable one under the circumstances."  The ruling Monday upheld a U.S. district judge's 2014 decision.  Mullins' attorney Christopher Roach has indicated further appeal is possible.  

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