Five Columbus police officers were sent home from special security duty in Milwaukee after shooting and killing man who was brandishing knives outside the Republican National Convention.
A bodycam video released Tuesday night shows a homeless man in Milwaukee with two knives directed toward another man being told by Columbus police repeatedly to drop the knives. When the knife-wielder charged at the other man, police shot him multiple times, killing him, the video shows.
The five Columbus police officers who shot at Samuel Sharpe Jr. while working as part of Milwaukee's security efforts surrounding the Republican National Convention are being sent back to Columbus, the president of the police union said Tuesday evening.
Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman said the shooting occurred near North 14th and West Vliet Streets just under a mile from the security perimeter for the Republican National Convention.
"Thirteen Columbus police officers were in the area for a briefing when they saw an altercation between two people, one of whom was holding a knife in each hand," said Norman.
No Milwaukee police officers were involved, Norman said.
Columbus Mayor Andrew J. Ginther said the body-worn camera footage was released in the interest of transparency and "shows that Columbus' officers acted in accordance with their training to prevent physical harm to a potential victim."
"Columbus officers were guests in Milwaukee, but they take an oath to protect and serve, wherever and whenever they are called to service," the mayor said.
Columbus will support "a full and thorough investigation of the events that transpired, in accordance with local policy and local law. We continue to defer to the Milwaukee Area Investigative Team for further updates on the status of the investigation," Ginther said.
Brian Steel, president of the Fraternal Order of Police Capital City Lodge No. 9, said a man was waving steak knives at other people and/or police when Columbus officers shot the individual, whom residents say had been homeless and living in a tent.
Steel said he did not know if the officers had tried to use deescalation measures or a stun gun before shooting at the man. No Columbus police officers were hurt, said Steel, who had no further details about the incident.
Columbus police are bringing the five officers involved back home, but the other 35 officers the city sent are remaining in Milwaukee, Steel said at the press conference at the Whitehall Police Department.
Multiple witnesses told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that the man, who died at the scene, was well-known, lived in a tent encampment and was known by the nickname "Jehovah." Police have not released the man's identity, but a cousin later identified the man as Sharpe.
A total of 40 Columbus officers, including the Division of Police's dialogue team, were in Milwaukee, as are officers from other cities around the country, to assist with security. Columbus police confirmed Wednesday that dialogue team officers were not involved in the shooting.
He was a person. He was human.
Shelly Sarasin, co-founder and director of Street Angels, said her outreach group goes to the area every Monday with a mobile shower unit.
Jehovah began using Street Angels' shower in April and used it this week, too, she said.
As he was leaving, he kept saying "I love you guys," Sarasin said.
“We might be the last people he said that to,” she said.
Sarasin said the death will impact the roughly 70 unhoused people who live in tents between 13th and 14th streets.
“He was a person. He was human,” she said, visibly shaken by the shooting. “This is more trauma on top of trauma for those who knew him and still live here.”
More:RNC protest response includes 'police dialogue team' from Columbus
Tuesday's shooting in Milwaukee marks the eighth time this year that Columbus police have shot someone.
On June 25, police shot at 64-year-old Benjamin Kelch after he stabbed multiple people inside a home on the Far East Side. That same month, Columbus police shot and killed 35-year-old Noel Hernandez after he approached police with what they described as an "edged weapon."
And in May, Columbus police shot and killed three people within a week of each other. In all three instances, the suspects opened fire on Columbus police officers, according to police accounts of the shootings.
More:What we know about shootings involving Franklin County police agencies in 2024
Why are Columbus police in Milwaukee for the RNC?
Milwaukee police had requested assistance from departments around the country, a request that was made prior to the assassination attempt on GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump at a rally held Saturday in Pennsylvania.
Such requests are relatively common, Steel said, adding that Columbus officers might provide security at the Democratic National Convention scheduled for mid-August should Chicago police request assistance.
"We've done RNCs and DNCs before, and we've done the inaugurations down in D.C. before," Steel said. "We'll probably do it again, right?"
In an interview about two hours before the shooting, Steel said Columbus sent two squads of bicycle officers and a dialogue team to the convention to help with crowd control and general security. Ohio Highway Patrol troopers were also providing additional security for vice presidential candidate JD Vance per a request from Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine,according to reports.
"The biggest reason the FOP gets involved was, let's just say, God forbid, one of them shot somebody ... well, we would obviously represent them," Steel said in the interview. "We have coordinated with FOP attorneys in Milwaukee, because obviously our attorneys are here. So if something was to happen, we would have attorneys that basically are helping us out."
What type of investigation will happen in Milwaukee?
Officers who are providing mutual aid for the convention are required to follow the Milwaukee Police Department's standard operating procedures on use of force, crowd control and rules of engagement.
According to an agreement signed by partner agencies, any disciplinary matters that arise with an outside officer will be referred to the home agency.
If the matter rises to the level of probable cause for a crime, it will be referred directly to Milwaukee police or an external law enforcement agency for investigation "with appropriate notice to Contractor," according to the agreement.
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost's office said the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation has not been requested to assist in the investigation. Even if the agency were to be requested, BCI does not have jurisdiction outside of Ohio.
The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation leads the investigations into all shootings involving Columbus police officers where a person is injured or killed.
John Diedrich, Ashley Luthern, Jessica Van Egeren, David Clarey and Sophie Carson of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel contributed to this story.
bbruner@gannett.com
