James Williams' widow refiles lawsuit, claiming Canton has 'shoot first' policy

The widow of a Canton man who was shot and killed by a city police officer last year has refiled a civil lawsuit against the city and officer in federal court.

Marquetta Williams filed the 24-page civil suit against the city in U.S. District Court in Akron earlier this week in the death of her husband, 46-year-old James Williams. Officer Robert Huber is also named as a defendant in the suit.

Williams was killed at his home in the 2300 block of 10th Street SW in the early hours of Jan. 1 when Huber shot at Williams through a 6-foot wooden fence without warning or announcing his presence. At the time, Williams was firing a Ruger AR-556 rifle into the air to celebrate the new year.

The lawsuit contends Williams wasn't posing a threat to the officer or anybody else.

A Stark County grand jury opted not to criminally charge Huber who said he feared for his safety and others.

The shooting and grand jury decision prompted protests in the city, and three City Council members walked out of a meeting in September to support protesters following the grand jury decision. The Stark NAACP also has called for increased transparency and police reform.

The new court filing follows a dismissal of a previous lawsuit filed by Marquetta Williams. Earlier this year, U.S. District Court Judge Benita Y. Pearson in Youngstown dismissed the case after Marquetta Williams failed to obtain new legal counsel after she fired her attorneys.

Judge Sara Lioi, a former Stark County Common Pleas Court judge, has been assigned the refiled litigation.

Mentor attorney Robert F. DiCello is Williams' lead attorney in the new lawsuit, according to court records. A message seeking comment was left with him on Tuesday.

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Canton Law Director Jason Reese said Tuesday afternoon that "it would be inappropriate for me to comment based on the pending litigation."

Besides Huber, retired Police Chief Jack Angelo and several other police officers are named as defendants in the lawsuit because of their supervisory roles.

The court action also accuses the city of having "an unwritten policy or custom of 'shoot first and ask questions later' in situations where, as here, a citizen has firearms in his possession and is discharging it."

Attorneys for Marquetta Williams also claim the city does not train officers such as Huber to de-escalate situations where residents are discharging firearms to celebrate the arrival of the new year.

The lawsuit seeks at least $1 million in compensatory and punitive damages.

Why were police called to James Williams' home?

The filing says that at around 11:30 p.m. Dec. 31, 2021, police received a call about a resident firing a gun to celebrate the new year.

Huber drove to the front of the home and saw the top of a person's head near a patio on the side of the house behind a privacy fence, said the lawsuit, which cites police records as the source of the information. The fence was roughly 6 feet high and made of vertical, wide slats of wood, court records said.

The fence obscured "the view into and out of the porch area," the complaint said.

Moments leading up to the fatal Canton shooting

After seeing the top of the patio door leading into the house open and close, Huber exited his police car and walked up the steps of the porch and peered through a window, the filing said.

Huber saw a "large male" walking with a full-size rifle in the house, the lawsuit said, citing police records.

Huber backed off the porch, moved into the street and activated his body worn camera; he also radioed police dispatch, requesting additional officers while noting that "a male was putting a rifle away," the lawsuit said.

Moments later, the officer heard gunfire coming from the porch area, and then approached the porch with his gun drawn, court records said.

The lawsuit notes that Huber did not have an arrest warrant for anyone at the home; did not see or hear any fighting; did not hear threatening words coming from inside the home; and did not hear loud voices or loud music, either.

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Huber did "not see an active shooter threatening someone," the filing added. The fence also blocked the officer's view of the porch and view into the home, according to court records. A bullhorn also wasn't used "to make any warnings or commands."

The lawsuit also claims that Huber didn't use his radio to call for backup or report his location as he approached the fenced-in porch. He also didn't report shots fired at him by Williams, the filing said.

Huber didn't wait for officers to set a perimeter before he approached the area, and he made no attempt "to de-escalate or announce his presence from any distance before he approaches the fenced-in porch," the lawsuit claims.

'Shots fired, send us everybody.'

Approaching the fence and getting within a few feet of it, Huber aimed his gun at the fence, firing multiple shots and striking Williams in the chest, according to court records.

Around that time, the officer used his police radio and said: "Shots fired, shots fired ... Police! Get down now! Police! Get down now!," the lawsuit said.

Running to his vehicle, Huber radioed dispatch and said: "Shots fired, send us everybody," the lawsuit said. "With blood all over his shirt ... Williams staggers into his house and falls" before dying on the living room floor in the presence of his children.

Huber didn't make an effort to provide medical care to Williams, the lawsuit said.

Reach Ed at ebalint@gannett.com

On Twitter @ebalintREP

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Lawsuit: Canton police used excessive force in death of James Williams