Bodycam footage has revealed the shocking moment an Ohio police officer shot a 15-year-old boy while he was walking down the street holding a toy gun.
Tavion Koonce-Williams, 15, was walking home on April 1 when a dog walker called 911 and reported him for 'aiming a gun at people's houses'.
Akron Police Officer Ryan Westlake found him and called out 'can I see your hands real quick?' and then fired a shot while climbing out of his patrol car.
He hit Koonce-Williams in the hand and the boy started shouting 'it's fake, it's fake' before he lay on the ground bleeding and tearfully told officers 'I'm a good kid, I get A's in school, I play football.'
Koonce-Williams was taken to hospital with non-threatening injuries while Westlake -who has a history of use of force incidents - was placed on leave while the shooting is investigated.
The boy's lawyer, Imokhai Okolo, told ABC: '[He] is now grappling with the trauma of being profiled and having his life flash before his eyes after being shot'.
Tavion Koonce-Williams, 15, was walking home with a toy gun on April 1 when a dog walker called 911
Akron Police Officer Ryan Westlake found him and called out 'can I see your hands real quick?' and then fired a shot
Koonce-Williams dropped the toy and fell to the floor, tearfully telling officers 'I'm a good kid, I get A's in school, I play football.'
Koonce-Williams told officers he was walking home from his cousin's funeral as his grandmother lived on the street.
At 7.04pm, a dog walker called 911 to report a 'black male' with 'shorter dreads' holding a gun 'a little bit bigger than a pistol' and 'acting like he was going to shoot their houses.'
Seven minutes later, Officer Westlake found Koonce-Williams and approached him.
The bodycam footage shows the officer calling out to him 'can I see your hands real quick?' and then firing a shot as he climbs out of the car.
The boy then screams and drops the toy gun on the floor while the officer says, 'oh s**t, oh s**t, shots fired, shots fired,' while the boy screams, 'it's fake, it's fake'.
The boy then lies on the grounds with his hands behind his back, bleeding heavily from his right hand.
Officer Westlake places handcuffs on his wrists, over the bullet wounds, before another officer tells him to take them off.
Koonce-Williams starts saying, 'it's fake, please bro, it's a fake gun, I was scared,' while another officer puts a tourniquet on his arm.
The boy calls out in pain and cries while the officer applying the tourniquet tells him 'you're going to be alright'.
The boy says: 'I'm just coming from home, I came from my cousin's funeral and everything.'
He starts sobbing as he says, 'I'm 15, I get As in school, I play football, my cousin has just died' and then adds 'I can't feel my hand.'
Koonce-Williams told officers he was walking home from his cousin's funeral at the time
He told officers 'it's fake, please bro, it's a fake gun, I was scared' as he lay on the floor
Officer Westlake put handcuffs on his wrists, over the bullet wounds, before another officer told him to take them off
Officer Westlake has worked for the force for nine years but was fired in 2021 for various policy violations and then rehired
The boy's lawyer, Okolo said: '[He] is no different than countless youth in this city who carry a toy guy. At no point was that gun pointed at anyone's home, at any individual, and certainly not any member of the Akron Police Department.
'Tavion was shot on the inside of his wrist which clearly indicates his hands were up when he was shot.
'Tavion now finds himself in the lineage of Black youth being profiled and shot by the Akron Police Department with absolutely no justification or regard for human life.'
After the incident, the officer was identified by the city of Akron as Ryan Westlake.
Westlake has worked for the force for nine years but was fired in 2021 for various policy violations and then rehired.
The city said: 'The officer's file includes a number of disciplinary actions and use of force incidents, one of which has been deemed unreasonable. Additionally, the city anticipates having further information to release in the coming weeks'.
Police told ABC: 'The officer stopped his marked police car to investigate. As the officer began to exit his patrol car. He quickly issued a verbal command for the male to show his hands.
'Seconds later, the officer discharged his firearm one time striking the male in the hand after observing the subject with what appeared to be a gun in his hand.'
