State And Regional

Shooting of escaped inmate holding woman knifepoint at Mason hotel ruled justified, prosecutor says

NOW PLAYING ABOVE

MASON — Warren County prosecutor, David Fornshell, said it was justified that an officer fatally shot an escaped inmate who held a hostage at knifepoint in a hotel back in July, according to our news partner WCPO in Cincinnati.

>>ORIGINAL STORY: Tactical team shoots escaped inmate holding woman at knife point at Mason hotel, prosecutor says

Thomas Cromwell, one of two inmates who escaped from the River City Correctional Center in Camp Washington, was shot to death by police following a nearly 12-hours SWAT situation at a Mason hotel.

Fornshell said Cromwell held a woman at knifepoint inside her hotel room and made statements that led police to believe her life was in danger, WCPO reports.

The shooting was ruled to be justified on Tuesday, according to Cromwell.

“After careful review of all the facts and evidence, I have concluded that the application of the use of deadly force by Warren County Tactical Response Unit Office/Franklin Division of Police Officer Christopher Keene was objectively reasonable under the circumstances as defined by Tennessee v. Garner, 471 U.S. 1 (1985) and Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386 (1989),” Fornshell said. “Therefore, our office will not be presenting this matter to the Warren County grand jury and this investigation will be considered closed.”

The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office said detectives went to the Baymont Inn near the site of the former Beach Waterpark in Mason to serve warrants for Thomas Cromwell’s arrest, according to WCPO. The sheriff’s office said it called Mason police and Warren County SWAT when Cromwell refused to cooperate.

Fornshell said the woman he held hostage was with him of her own free will to start, but when police attempted to contact Cromwell, he escalated things to a hostage situation, WCPO said.

Hours into the standoff with SWAT, Fornshell said Cromwell made comments that led police to believe the woman’s life was “in imminent danger.”

The tactical team made the decision to force entry into the room and confronted Cromwell, according to Fornshell.

When they did, they saw Cromwell holding a knife to the hostage’s neck, Fornshell said.

The office fired a single shot from his rifle, striking Cromwell in the head, killing him and causing him to release the hostage and drop the knife, Fornshell said according to WCPO.

>>RELATED: Second inmate who escaped from correctional center in Cincinnati re-arrested

Cromwell, 27, escaped from the River City Correctional Center in Camp Washington with another inmate, 29-year-old Shawn Black, between midnight and 1 a.m. on July 9, WCPO reported.

The two were discovered missing when staff discovered bedding and clothes made in the shape of a person in Cromwell’s bed that morning.

“We want to reiterate that Mr. Cromwell’s escape from River City Correctional Center was not under the supervision of the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office,” spokesperson Kyla Woods said. “We were notified and asked to investigate the incident.”

Black, the second inmate, was found in North College Hill and re-arrested in July, according to WCPO.


0