Bond has been set at $1 million for a University of Cincinnati police officer who pleaded not guilty Thursday in the fatal shooting death of a driver.
A grand jury indicted Ray Tensing after reviewing body camera video that captured the July 19 shooting death of Samuel DuBose during a traffic stop in Mount Auburn, a neighborhood of Cincinnati.
Tensing turned himself in to authorities Wednesday afternoon at the Hamilton County Courthouse in downtown Cincinnati. He was with his attorney.
That was about an hour after Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters announced a grand jury’s decision to charge Tensing with murder after fatally shooting DuBose during the off-campus traffic stop.
“This is without question a murder,” Deters said Wednesday afternoon. "He should have never been a police officer."
If convicted, Tensing faces at least 15 years in prison, and potentially a life sentence, on the murder charge. Tensing is also charged with voluntary manslaughter, which could carry another 11 years.
Deters said he will seek life in prison for Tensing.
Mike Robison, spokesman for the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office, which operates the jail, said Tensing would be treated like any other inmate and sent through a medical evaluation and other processes. Then, Robison said, the jail would determine where to place him as far as safety and security.
Most inmates facing a serious charge of murder would be placed in their own cell or pod, Robison said.
University of Cincinnati President Santa J. Ono told reporters during a press conference following the indictment that he and UCPD Chief Jason Goodrich terminated Tensing’s employment with the department.
How the video differs from the police report
Stew Mathews, Tensing’s attorney, said earlier this week that he expected Tensing would be indicted.
“He’s not doing well,” Mathews said. “He feels terrible about it. He didn’t become a police officer to go out and shoot anyone.”
Mathews criticized Deters' announcement, saying he believes his client "has been thrown under the bus," and that "what Deters said was a disgrace" to Cincinnati law enforcement.
If Tensing is not convicted, he could still face a civil suit. DuBose's family has hired attorney Mark O’Mara, best known for his defense of George Zimmerman in the killing of Trayvon Martin, to represent them.
