CINCINNATI — Ohio lawmaker Cecil Thomas asked Black community leaders in Cincinnati to join him at a meeting Monday to discuss concerns tied to the downtown fight that has garnered national attention.
Specifically, Thomas asked Black leaders, representatives of Black organizations and supporters of the Black community to attend to express any concerns tied to the city's handling of the fight.
Dozens of people filled pews at New Prospect Baptist Church to listen as local leaders spoke about the videos, the brawl and law enforcement's response in the weeks that have followed. Then, community members themselves took up mics to ask their questions of those leaders and express their feelings.
Questions remain on why one man still does not face charges
Ohio state representative Cecil Thomas began by questioning why Cincinnati Police Chief Teresa Theetge and other officials have not announced any charges for a man involved in the fight who appeared to slap another man toward the beginning of the altercation.
He said the lack of charges for a person who appeared to have incited the fight "raises serious questions on whether there is bias involved in the investigation."
"The Black community of this city demands to be respected and until justice is fully served, this city can not and will not move forward," said Thomas.
His comments were met with applause from the audience.
Local leaders also stood in front of the crowd to speak, including council member Scotty Johnson, Vice Mayor Jan-Michele Lemon Kearney, Pastor Damon Lynch, Pastor Leslie Jones, and former juvenile judge and current pastor Tracie Hunter.
"So, what incited and who incited the riot?" said Lynch. "If the riot is because of the slap, who incited the riot? And how are the only people charged — I'll say it again — the ones who look like me?"
You can watch video of the slap that was played at the press conference below:
Most of the speakers and many audience members expressed support for charging and arresting the man who appears to slap another before the most violent parts of the fight broke out.
Johnson also spoke on city leaders' responsibilities in the two weeks since the fight and said they have missed the mark.
"We as a city have blown this one," said Johnson. "We as a city have missed the mark on this one ... We missed it as a city, I'm one of those people. But now we gotta get back on the right track. We are not going anywhere until justice prevails."
Kearney agreed, saying it was apparent in the video that one man was the catalyst for the violence that night.
"We haven't seen justice in this case and we've waited a long time — two weeks is a long time," said Kearney. "It's time to make these charges, it's time to do that today."
Johnson also implied that action might be taken if the man who appeared to slap another is not charged with a crime.
"There is something in the chamber that is coming if there isn't a move to justice," said Johnson.
Other speakers at the meeting pointed to the possibility of a charge of inciting a riot, since those who have been arrested face aggravated rioting charges.
Thomas said he was told the man has retained a lawyer and is not talking to police. Theetge said something similar over a week ago, during a city press conference about the fight.
"Just yesterday, asking the investigators to go to the Justice Center, speak with him. He is represented by counsel. The investigators are aware of that. They spoke to his counsel before they went down to see him, and the counsel said no, they did not want the police talking to his client. So therefore, we have not had a conversation with him yet," Theetge said.
You can watch the full meeting in the player below:
'Do not politicize our pain'
Speakers also called for lawmakers, politicians and those on social media to stop leveraging the fight for political reasons. Both Vice President JD Vance and Ohio Senator Bernie Moreno have weighed in on the fight; Moreno held a press conference on August 6 where Holly, a woman injured in the fight, took the podium to speak out for the first time.
Gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy also held a town hall on crime in Cincinnati on August 4.
"Do not politicize our pain," said Jones. "Our communities are not battlegrounds for political agendas."
Jones went on to call for the arrest of every individual involved in the fight on July 28, regardless of their race or socioeconomic background.
"Our young people are restless and they're watching," said Jones. "Our community is restless and they're watching."
"This was racially and politically skewed from the beginning," said Johnson. "We have allowed right-wing pressure to move us in a direction that we had no intention of going. JD Vance and Bernie Moreno have dictated the direction of this investigation. We cannot bow to and allow political pressure to skew criminal investigations."
Johnson said he doesn't want to see Cincinnati move backward after 24 years of work since Cincinnati's famed Collaborative Agreement, which has since become the model for other cities on police relationships with communities of color.
"JD Vance has a brother that's running for mayor," pointed out one community member during the Q&A session of the meeting.
Cory Bowman, Vance's half-brother, is running for Cincinnati mayor against current Mayor Aftab Pureval.
Other community members pointed out that — both in and out of downtown — there are other crimes that police haven't been able to solve, while they've been able to arrest six people for a fist fight.
"This is not 2001, this is 2025 and we're gonna stand fast and we're gonna stand firm," said one community member, who also accused law enforcement of not being transparent with their investigation.
'They've seen a riot — go back to 2001, that's a riot.'
Community members at the meeting lined up to ask questions of the leaders in attendance, and to express their feelings on the fight and everything that's happened since.
Many in attendance expressed concern and outrage at what they called a lack of transparency from Cincinnati police and law enforcement leadership.
Thomas said when he asked CPD leadership about any additional arrests in the case, he was told multiple times that "additional arrests are imminent." He said he waited, only to see that six Black people were charged in connection with the fight — but not the white man who appeared to slap a Black man in the face.
"We need transparency," said Thomas. "Because there's a lot of questions and concerns and this is why we're having this meeting today. We are demanding openness and transparency to cover the entire situation from beginning to end."
Community members also raised questions around whether the six people — who were just indicted Friday on extra charges through Ohio's complicity laws — have been over-charged. Each of the six suspects were indicted on two counts of aggravated rioting, three counts of assault and three counts of felonious assault. Previously, most of the suspects faced just one count of each or just assault charges.
"They've seen a riot," said Thomas. "Go back to 2001, that's a riot."
They all face up to 29.5 years in prison if convicted on all charges.
"Can you imagine facing 29 and a half years all because you got in a fight and the man who started the fight lost?" said Lynch.
Videos have been posted to social media and released by law enforcement since the fight itself went viral weeks ago. On Friday, Cincinnati police released body camera footage from officers' interactions with the alleged victims in the fight after it was over.
