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Two former Oklahoma police officers who fatally shot Quadry Sanders, a 29-year-old unarmed Black man, must be reinstated and given back pay, arbitrators have ordered.
According to the New York Times, two arbitrators ruled last month that Lawton police officers Nathan Ronan, who is white, and Robert Hinkle, who is Black, were justified in the 2021 shooting of Sanders.
Officers encountered Sanders on December 5, 2021, after receiving a call about a man entering a home in violation of a protective order. According to police, the caller said the man was armed.
Body camera footage of the incident shows Sanders near a refrigerator holding a baseball cap. When Sanders moved behind the fridge, Hinkle fired four shots, according to body camera footage. Sanders then fell to the ground before sitting up with his hand above his head. Hinkle shot Sanders seven more times, and Ronan also fired four shots.
The officers claimed that they saw Sanders reach into his pockets when he stepped behind the refrigerator. However, city officials said the officers weren't in imminent danger when they fired the deadly shots.
Lawton’s city manager, John Ratliff, terminated Ronan and Hinkle in January 2022. Ratliff called the arbitrators' order to reinstate the officers "disappointing" and noted that city officials would meet later this month to weigh their next move.
“While City Officials disagree with the awards and are disappointed with the outcome, it is important for citizens to understand that arbitration proceedings are strictly administrative in nature and that they are limited to administrative violations; and that both former officers remain under indictment for the shooting death of Mr. Sanders,” a statement from city officials reads.
The officers still face first-degree manslaughter charges and a lawsuit filed by Sanders' family.
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