Grand jury begins hearing evidence in Tamir Rice killing

CLEVELAND (AP) — A grand jury has begun evaluating evidence to decide whether criminal charges should be filed against two white police officers in the fatal shooting of Tamir Rice, a 12-year-old black boy carrying a pellet gun outside a recreation center.

The head of Cleveland's largest police union told The Associated Press today that officers were subpoenaed to testify before the grand jury last week and on Monday.

"We've cooperated fully," said Steve Loomis, president of the Cleveland Police Patrolmen's Association. "I have all the confidence in the world in the grand jury system and our system of justice."

Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Tim McGinty has said he would take the case to the grand jury, but Loomis' comments revealed that the panel had begun hearing the case. McGinty's spokesman Joe Frolik said the prosecutor's office cannot comment on grand jury proceedings.

The Nov. 22, 2014, killing became a flashpoint in the wake of other deadly police encounters with young black males across the country.

Tamir was playing with a borrowed airsoft gun, which shoots nonlethal plastic pellets, when someone called 911. The gun bore a striking resemblance to a real firearm, in part because its tell-tale orange tip had been removed.