Zack Reed Criticized for Accepting Cleveland Police Union Endorsement

The lawyer representing the mother of Tamir Rice is criticizing Cleveland City Councilman Zack Reed – a candidate for mayor -- for accepting the endorsement of the Cleveland police union and its president Steve Loomis. 

On his website, Subodh Chandra writes, “there are some political moments so dubious, revealing, and consequential that fundamental truths need to be told. Those moments strip bare who a person is. Reed's embrace of the police union's and Loomis's endorsement after Tamir's death, ignoring the union's bitter opposition to civil-rights enforcement and police reform, is just such a moment.” 

Chandra is a former Cleveland law director. He and Rice’s mother Samaria will hold a press conference at Chandra’s law firm Monday at which they plan to issue a “specific demand” for Reed.

Reed says he has not been invited to the press conference.  He says Chandra is continuing to divide the community with an “us against them” mentality.

“I am trying to bring this city back and make one Cleveland, one city,” says Reed.  “And it’s things like this and individuals like him and other individuals that continue to try to drive a wedge between the people in this community.  I am working very hard to be the mayor of the entire city of Cleveland -- the unions, including the police unions, to work with the federal government, to work with the residents to try to create a better police department so that we will never have a tragedy like Tamir Rice.” 

Reed says he has expressed, both privately with the Rice family and publicly, his criticism of the November 2014 incident in which 12-year old Tamir Rice was shot and killed by Cleveland police officer Timothy Loehmann outside Cudell recreation center. 

The Cleveland Police Patrolmen’s Association endorsed Reed on Wednesday.  A written statement from CPPA president Steve Loomis says, “Councilman Reed has been consistent in his concern for rising violent crime rates and the need to improve police staffing levels…” 

Reed’s mayoral candidacy has focused on a platform of public safety.  He points out the endorsement came from the CPPA, not from its president. “This is not an endorsement of Steve Loomis.  This is an endorsement of the CPPA, of which he is a member, of which he has one vote.”