RYAN HINTON: A FAMILY'S GRIEF

Grief feels so much like fear, to quote author C.S. Lewis.

It's a sickening feeling that is all too familiar to many Black people in the US who contend with and are victims of police brutality. Such is the case of the family of 18-year-old Ryan Hinton, who was fatally shot by Ohio Cincinnati police on 1 May. 2025. The following day, Hinton's father, Rodney Hinton Jr., allegedly struck and killed Hamilton County Sheriff's Deputy Larry Henderson with his car. Deputy Henderson was directing traffic for a University of Cincinnati graduation ceremony at the time.

Cincinnati Police Chief stated that the two tragic incidents are connected. Rodney Hinton Jr. has been charged with aggravated murder in the death of Deputy Henderson and is currently being held without bond. His attorney plans to file a motion for a mental competency hearing. The family of Ryan Hinton has launched an independent investigation into his death. They have also offered condolences to the family of Deputy Henderson.

The Cincinnati Police Department released body camera footage of the shooting of Ryan Hinton. The footage shows an officer shooting at Hinton, who appeared to be running away. Police say Hinton was armed and pointed a gun at the officer, but it is unclear from the footage if this is the case, with many who have viewed the footage doubting the police's version of events. 

Data from Mapping Police Violence, a project aimed at delivering precise statistics on police-related fatalities, shows that in 2024, US police killed 1,364 individuals—8 more than in 2023. Even though Black people are 13% of the US population, they accounted for 22.72% of police killings in 2024, highlighting the fact that despite the enactment of the Civil Rights Act, Black people still face systematic discrimination from US law enforcement. Such structural targeting and racial profiling occur at every level of the US justice system, from legislation to policing to biased incarceration.

Video credit: WCPO 9

Sources

https://www.wcpo.com/news/local-news/what-we-know-about-the-deaths-of-18-year-old-ryan-hinton-and-deputy-larry-henderson

https://www.fox19.com/2025/05/05/family-18-year-old-suspect-killed-shooting-with-police-hold-press-conference/

https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2025/05/05/mom-grandmother-of-ryan-hinton-shot-by-cincinnati-police-to-speak/83457769007/

https://www.wvxu.org/local-news/2025-05-05/family-attorneys-investigation-ryan-hinton-police-shooting-death

https://naacp.org/resources/criminal-justice-fact-sheet#:~:text=A%20Black%20person%20is%20five,targeted%20because%20of%20their%20race

https://www.economist.com/united-states/2024/08/22/police-are-killing-more-americans-than-ever-wheres-the-outrage

https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2025/01/03/xymt-j03.html

https://www.statista.com/statistics/585152/people-shot-to-death-by-us-police-by-race/

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/24/us/police-killings-prosecution-charges.html