COLUMBUS, Ohio — People in Columbus are asking for answers from police about a man who was shot over the weekend while running from police during a traffic stop.
Michael Cleveland, 66, was shot at least once Sunday afternoon in the 1000 block of Wilson Avenue.
In an interview moments after the shooting, Beverly Coleman told 10TV that she received a call that Cleveland, who is the father of her children, was shot.
“I was nervous and I'm shocked and I'm still shocked. I can't believe it,” Coleman said Sunday evening.
Coleman questioned what led up to the shots being fired and why police felt the use of force against Cleveland was necessary.
“He's a good person, he don't bother nobody, he's a real good person,” Coleman said.
Video released by police on Monday shows two officers in a cruiser following a black Dodge truck. Officers recognized Cleveland seconds after he drove by. The officers continued to follow Cleveland until he parked behind a building, got out and ran away.
Body camera footage shows people marching in the background of where Cleveland was running. As Cleveland was running in between two buildings, officer Joshua Ohlinger, a five-year veteran of the department, fired six shots.
Pastor Frederick Lamarr and his church members were holding their monthly “Stop the Violence” event, with as may as 70 people marching along Wilson Avenue.
“I’m still traumatized,” LaMarr said. “We out there marching so if you're shooting at Mike and if you miss him, I've got children, I've got elderly.”
In the days after the shooting, LaMarr is concerned the video will bring more community outrage.
"Me after seeing it, I'm just hurt by it [the footage]. I'm hurt by the fact that where we tried to bring about resolution as far as stopping the violence, there is a disconnect somewhere, where we all are not working together,” LaMarr said.
LaMarr said he questions why police followed Cleveland in the first place.
“As I watched, it didn't like he made no, he didn't run the stop sign, he didn't do nothing as far as breaking the law, other than, maybe if he was targeted,” LaMarr said.
When asked why police were trying to stop Cleveland during a press conference on Monday, Columbus Police Chief Elaine Bryant said BCI will get the officer's statements and make that determination.
Meanwhile, Pastor LaMarr hopes Cleveland, a member of his community, is given a second chance, despite a long record of run-ins with police.
"I've been knowing Mike for 25 years and just like all of us, none of us is the best of citizens, but Mike is respectful, Mike is caring, Mike is loving. That's all I’ve ever known him to be,” LaMarr said.
The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation is handling the investigation into the shooting.