COLUMBUS, Ohio — Rebecca Duran said it is hard to process that Aug. 30 will mark one year since her son Donovan Lewis was killed.
Now-former Columbus police officer Ricky Anderson fatally shot Lewis while serving a search warrant. The 22-year-old was wanted on multiple charges, including domestic violence, assault and improper handling of a firearm.
Police body camera footage shows Anderson opening an apartment bedroom door and shooting Lewis, who was in bed, roughly one second later.
A vape pen was found next to Lewis on his bed. In the bodycam footage, it appeared he was holding it before he was shot.
"It's rough. It's rough for all of us, for anyone that knew him. Unchartered territory. I don't know. I'm doing my best to keep it together day by day. The bottom line is he should still be here and I'm going to be grieving that for the rest of my life," Duran said.
The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation launched an investigation into the shooting. Anderson was placed on administrative leave and then retired from the police department in bad standing because of the criminal investigation.
Duran and the rest of his family have called for justice in Lewis’ death. The family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Anderson and is considering a lawsuit against the city of Columbus.
On Friday, the Franklin County Prosecutor’s Office announced that Anderson was formally indicted by a grand jury on murder and reckless homicide charges.
When Duran spoke after the indictment was formally announced, she said she’s been going through a lot of emotions.
"I cried — sadness — tears of sadness and joy because I'm grateful that they did the right thing. They indicted him for what, most definitely, are the charges that he needs to be held responsible for. I'm still sad because the bottom line is Donovan should still be here,” she said.
While charges were formally filed, Duran said she understood that the work is not done.
"I do recognize that it is a process that can't happen from one day to the next and we're ready for that," she said.
Anderson is scheduled to be arraigned in Franklin County Court of Common Pleas on Monday. Duran said she plans to be in court during all the hearings.
"He deserves to look the people in the face that he directly affected and hurt,” she said.