With apologies to Keith Olbermann, we already know who the Worst Person In The World is in the Tamir Rice case. The Cleveland cop who shot him, Timothy Loehmann, did so only 1.5 seconds after he arrived--nowhere near enough time to give a warning. We also know that Loehmann should have never been on the force to begin with. Not only was he forced to resign from the police department in nearby Independence due to concerns about his mental stability, but he admitted to working under the table after being forced out in Independence--and Cleveland hired him anyway.
Well, this weekend I mentioned in Liberal America that the Second Worst Person In The World is whoever failed to pass on two critical details mentioned by the 911 caller--that Tamir's gun was likely fake, and that Tamir was a juvenile. Last week, Cleveland officials revealed that the 911 operator who took the original call was Constance Hollinger, and the dispatcher who sent police to the scene was Beth Mandl. It's not immediately clear who failed to pass the information on. WEWS-TV quotes city officials as seemingly putting the blame on Hollinger. However, WOIO says that Hollinger transferred the call to Mandl via a computer screen--raising the possibility that Mandl may have simply failed to pass all of that information on to police. We'll probably get a definitive answer soon enough, though. The Plain Dealer has asked for records of any communication between Hollinger and Mandl that day.
What is beyond dispute is that there was an inexcusable breakdown in communication that day--one that only adds to the colossal fails that took place in this situation. Tamir's family already has grounds for a whopping lawsuit. This only adds to it.