An ex-cop in Philadelphia who killed an unarmed Black man, Dennis Plowden, is facing charges three years after the incident.
According to NBC10, a grand jury made the announcement on Friday, recommending charges of first-degree murder, third-degree murder, voluntary manslaughter and possession of an instrument of crime.
The ex-officer, Eric Ruch Jr., shot Plowden in 2017 after multiple police cars pursued the 25-year-old and caused him to crash his 2013 Hyundai. Ruch, who is white, and his partner initiated the chase after asking police dispatch to check the registration of his car, suspecting that the car may be connected to a homicide case, the grand jury stated. But the officers' suspicion was never confirmed, the Associated Press reported.
“They called the number into police radio to stop a ‘mover,’ which is police slang for any moving vehicle," Assistant District Attorney Vincent Corrigan said. "There’s no information on the police radio before the incident that indicates that anyone knew for sure that this vehicle may have been involved in a homicide."
Plowden was dazed while sitting on the ground with his left hand raised after the crash, but Ruch fired his gun at the young man's head, the court stated. The Philadelphia man died at the hospital a day later.
"Eric Ruch killed Dennis Plowden while on duty, by firing his gun directly at Plowden’s head as Plowden sat on the ground with his left empty hand raised and clearly visible," District Attorney Larry Krasner said at a news conference on Friday. "The bullet tore through the fingers of that left hand before it entered Plowden’s head."
These are the cars police and witnesses say Dennis Plowden slammed into while speeding away from a traffic stop. Witnesses claim they heard police yelling commands, but also claim they heard Plowden saying he was hurt. @NBCPhiladelphia
pic.twitter.com/AiIoZQX7UQ— Aaron Baskerville (@ABaskerville10) December 29, 2017
Krasner said Ruch was driving an unmarked police car when he spotted the Hyundai and radioed for backup. After a two-minute chase, multiple unmarked police vehicles surrounded Plowden and caused him to crash into parked cars.
"The two unmarked cars along with two marked police vehicles pursued Plowden at high speed until he struck three parked cars, spun around, and finally stopped after striking a pole," the grand jury report stated.
Krasner said Plowden stumbled from his car and appeared to be trying to obey police commands, but Ruch shot the dazed man within six to eight seconds after arriving at the scene.
The district attorney identified the COVID-19 pandemic and the lack of video evidence as part of the reason for the delay in the case.
"If we think about a case like the George Floyd case, that is a case where you have a video that captures a lot," Krasner said. "What we find in general in cases where police accountability is at issue, is where we have video evidence or very strong evidence, we can move more swiftly."
Ruch, who was fired a few months after the shooting, turned himself into police on Friday. He is expected to be held without bail.
According to CBS Philly, Plowden had a six-month baby when he was killed. Tania, the wife of the 25-year-old, said she is devastated for her son, but glad to see the charges.
“I felt overwhelmed, but at the same time, I felt progress had really been made,” Tania told CBS Philly. “It can’t bring me closure because I can’t get my husband back. My son was robbed of a life to know his father. At 6 months old, he doesn’t have a memory of his dad.”
