Donovan Lewis’ mother, Rebecca Doran, angry with Columbus police after shooting, video shows

While a new video offers a fresh perspective on the murder of Donovan Lewis, a 20-year-old black man who was shot by a Columbus police officer in bed last month while likely clutching a vape pen, the murdered man’s family has issued a new call for justice.

“I want to see real action,” Lewis’ mother, Rebecca Doran, said during a press conference Thursday outside Columbus City Hall, noting that she was “a little bit at a loss.”

“There’s the slang saying, ‘Don’t talk about it, be about it.’ Let’s see something happen, not just talk and talk.”

Doran’s request for “Justice for Donovan” came when the Columbus Police Department released new body camera footage showing the traumatic aftermath of the early morning accident on August 30. In the footage, Doran is seen explaining to an officer at the scene that she received a call from Lewis’ girlfriend about the shooting – and asking which hospital her son was taken to.

When an officer admitted he didn’t know, Doran was heard shouting, “How come you fucker doesn’t know you were there? You guys have police radios.”

“How can they call his girlfriend and not me?” She added, before chanting, “Oh my God,” with her hand on her head.

The mother was then seen explaining in the footage that her son was “mentally ill” and that she had “begged” for his help for years. On Thursday, Doran made it clear that she had “consistently” tried to get Lewis to get counselors and psychiatrists for the majority of his life.

“He was special and different and the good and the bad right from the start. He fell on deaf ears and I think some of that was because of the color of his skin,” Doran said of previous attempts to get help, noting that “Donovan had the biggest heart.”

“People thought it was a discipline issue, not a mental health condition,” she added.

The Columbus Division of Police said the incident began around 2:30 a.m. when officers attempted to execute a felony order at a second-floor apartment on Sullivant Street. Court records show that the officers were attempting to serve Lewis with a warrant for a misdemeanor of domestic violence, improper handling of a firearm, and assault. According to an August 10 criminal complaint filed in Franklin County Municipal Court, Lewis’ girlfriend told police that she was pregnant with his child – and that the two had an argument in Westgate Park, where he pushed her.

Body camera footage initially released on the day of the shooting showed that after knocking for about eight minutes and arresting two other people in the apartment, the officers went into the back bedroom where Lewis was sleeping – and that he was shot at about a second after the door was opened. Lewis’ hand raised when Officer Ricky Anderson, who was carrying a K-9, fired a single shot.

The additional body camera video released Thursday shows a different angle from the shooting, with Lewis moving around in bed feeling palpable pain after being shot. The officers can be heard yelling at him to show his hands as he writhes around and appears to be trying to comply.

The footage then shows two officers handcuffing the wounded Louis and carrying him out of the apartment before providing assistance, indicating at one point that he was resisting. Lewis was pronounced dead at a local hospital shortly thereafter, and a copy of the search warrant and evidence receipt states that no firearms were found in Lewis’ apartment after the accident.

However, the vape pen was collected from his bed.

Rex Elliott, an attorney for Columbus, who represents the family, confirmed Thursday that Lewis was still “out of it” when officers broke into his room.

“There were cops and dogs in his apartment,” Elliott said. The lawyer claimed that it took six minutes for the authorities to provide medical assistance to the 20-year-old.

The footage released Thursday shows that after Louis was finally taken to the hospital, several officers stood around as Doran approached them hysterically asking them where she could find her son. When an officer explained that they were still trying to identify the individuals involved in the incident, Doran replied: “I know it’s him, the police called. [his girlfriend]. “

She added: “The police called her and said that he died and they revived him and they are still working on him and he did not respond.” Earlier this week, Latonia Lewis spoke to Washington Post About the loss of her boyfriend and the father of her child – and the guilt she feels upon learning of her call to the police about their argument may have spurred the chain of events leading up to his death.

“He was a really good person,” the 30-year-old, who also happens to share the same last name with Lewis, told outlets. “I never wanted him to get into trouble. I wanted him to find out about his life. I would never understand this.”

Anderson, who has been on the force for 30 years and is in the canine unit, has been put on leave pending an investigation into the shooting. The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation has also opened an investigation into Lewis’ death. A funeral service open to the public will be held for Lewis on Saturday afternoon at Christian Valley Missionary Baptist Church.

Anderson’s lawyers did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday.

“The officer needs to be fired. Not on paid leave, not on vacation. Doran stressed, Thursday, that we are not on leave, and he should not be on leave.