11 current and former East Cleveland police officers indicted after ‘appalling’ behavior caught on video, prosecutor says

By Michelle Watson, CNN

Eleven current and former East Cleveland Police Department officers indicted earlier this month participated in “appalling” behavior and face charges including assault, dereliction of duty and interfering with civil rights, authorities in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, said after they released video showing several incidents.

Seven are facing charges for the first time, while four others were indicted on new charges, authorities announced.

Ten of the 11 officers pleaded not guilty to the charges at an arraignment March 28, according to court records. The arraignment for the 11th officer, who resigned from the department, was rescheduled for April 4, according to the court docket.

The new indictments raise the number of former or current East Cleveland police officers who have been indicted in the past seven months to 16, Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael C. O’Malley said in early March.

“Make no mistake, there has been a cancer growing in the East Cleveland Police Department,” O’Malley said. “We are doing our best to remove every tentacle of that cancer so that this department can rebuild and grow to put itself in a position to hire officers who enforce the law as well as follow the law.”

O’Malley showed several videos of the 11 officers participating in behavior he called “appalling.” CNN has reached out to the Cuyahoga County prosecutor’s office for the original footage of the alleged incidents in question.

The 11 new indictments stem from incidents between February 2020 and July 2022, authorities said.

“In the next couple of weeks, we will be issuing a release detailing the 11 incidents with additional videos,” O’Malley said.

East Cleveland’s recently appointed chief of police, Brian Gerhard, said the indictments will not prevent the department from functioning and protecting citizens.

“I have cooperated fully with the county prosecutor’s office and will continue to do so,” Gerhard stated in a news release. “As I stated when appointed chief last October, I will move the department in a positive direction, I have very good personnel on my staff that will assist me rebuilding the agency.”

CNN has reached out to the 11 current and former officers for comment.

The Fraternal Order of Police / Ohio Labor Council, the largest law enforcement labor organization in the state, said in a statement Thursday the 11 officers “are entitled to due process like all citizens” and encouraged “everyone to reserve judgment until facts are known.”

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