CLEVELAND — A civil lawsuit has been filed in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court against two Cleveland police officers who were suspended earlier this month for their response to a fatal shooting involving Antwoina Carter on St. Patrick’s Day, 2024, in the Glenville Neighborhood.
The lawsuit, filed by Latrice Carter, alleges that officers Dylan O’Donnell and Amanda Rock acted recklessly and caused her emotional distress through negligence when they opened fire on her daughter Antwoina’s car as it sped toward them, moments after she had already been shot nearby by a stranger later identified as Christopher Stinson.
Earlier this year, Stinson was sentenced to decades in prison as part of a plea deal. He pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter and other charges in connection with Carter’s death.
The lawsuit states that although Stinson fired the fatal shot, O’Donnell and Rock were found to have violated police department policy when they fired their service weapons at Carter’s car. The filing argues that their “reckless conduct escalated the situation, causing her to lose control of her vehicle, sideswipe a police car, and crash further down the street.”
The lawsuit notes that Latrice Carter witnessed the officers “fire upon” her daughter’s car and she yelled, “Stop, no! That’s my daughter! Ya’ll shooting at my daughter! That’s my daughter!”
It also states that Carter “continues to suffer severe emotional trauma and has had to seek professional counseling,” in addition to now caring for her daughter’s five children.
Carter is seeking a jury trial and is requesting compensatory damages exceeding $25,000, along with attorney’s fees and court costs.
I’ve reached out to the Cleveland Police Patrolmen's Association for comment on the lawsuit, but have not yet received a response.
Tyler Sinclair, a spokesperson for the City of Cleveland, said, "The City hasn’t even been served with this lawsuit at this point. Once that happens, we will review the allegations and respond accordingly in court."
Reaction from Latrice and family attorney
Earlier this month, Attorney Tom Monah spoke to me after news of the officers’ suspensions broke. At that time, he said a civil lawsuit was being prepared and that the officers receiving suspensions validated the family’s longstanding concerns.
"I mean, that just affirms everything we've been saying for over a year now, how things went down could not have been in line with public safety or even the department's own policy," Monah said.
He added that officers’ actions highlight a broader need for more training, and Latrice Carter has been forever changed by what unfolded during the event of March 17, 2024.
“She’s almost a year after (and) is still in therapy. She actually fears the police. Just from talking with her, you can see that she is still traumatized. The entire family is traumatized."
Events of March 17, 2024
On the morning of St. Patrick’s Day 2024, Antwoina Carter came under attack while driving near her home in the Glenville neighborhood.
I spoke to her family days later.
Prosecutors said Stinson, who was a passenger in a vehicle following Carter, fatally shot her, firing 20 rounds and striking her once in the back.
The incident was captured on surveillance video.
As Carter turned onto her street, officers O’Donnell and Rock were already at her home investigating an unrelated domestic violence call in which a car window had reportedly been shot out.
Hearing gunfire and seeing a vehicle approaching at high speed, the officers fired. Carter’s car crashed, and she later died at the hospital.
In addition to Stinton’s prison sentence, Lashuwndre Coleman was sentenced to a year of probation for obstructing official business, and Trinity Ford was sentenced to five to six years in prison for involuntary manslaughter.
Officers cleared of any criminal wrongdoing
As I previously reported, both officers were cleared of any criminal wrongdoing. A forensic investigation confirmed that neither fired the fatal shot.
Earlier this month, I also reported that an internal investigation concluded that Officers O’Donnell and Rock violated department policy when they discharged their weapons.
O’Donnell received a 15-day suspension without pay; Rock received a 10-day suspension without pay.
A letter from Cleveland Director of Public Safety Wayne Drummond stated: “Both officers discharged their service weapons during this highly volatile and rapidly unfolding situation. It’s evident from the investigation, as well as from the officers’ own accounts and the video evidence reviewed, that they were in fear for their lives at the time they made the decision to use deadly force.”
The letter continued: “Policy requires that officers verify a visible and immediate threat before discharging a firearm. In this case, the investigation concluded that those standards were unfortunately not met. As a result, consistent with the Division’s disciplinary matrix, and our obligation to apply it uniformly, disciplinary suspensions were issued.”
