Mother files $1 million wrongful death lawsuit after her son was killed by Oklahoma police

The mother of a Black man shot and killed by Lawton police in December has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against two former officers and the city.

Mina Woods, a Texas resident and mother of Quadry Malik Sanders, seeks a jury trial and more than $1 million, according to the lawsuit filed July 15 in federal court.

Named in the lawsuit are former Lawton police officers Robert Hinkle, 30, and Nathan Ronan, 30, along with the city of Lawton.

Hinkle, who also is Black, and Ronan face first-degree manslaughter charges in Comanche County District Court after the Dec. 5 shooting death of Sanders, who was 29.

About 8:30 p.m., officers responded to a 911 call on an alleged protective order violation in the 1800 block of NW Lincoln Avenue.

The caller reported Sanders was waving a gun in the house and wouldn’t let a resident leave, according to authorities.

Authorities said the officers requested that Sanders come out of the house. He exited the side of the house and then went back inside before coming out to the front, according to authorities.

During what authorities called a confrontation in front of the home, police fatally shot Sanders.

The Lawton Police Department turned the investigation over to the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, and also conducted its own administrative investigation into the fatal shooting.

On Jan. 7, Lawton City Manager Michael Cleghorn issued a statement that “upon careful consideration,” Hinkle and Ronan were fired from the police department.

“The actions of these officers were not in conformance with the Lawton Police Department’s well-established training protocols, policies, practices, customs or procedures,” Cleghorn said in the statement.

In May, the city of Lawton released more than 23 minutes of the police body camera footage.

Officers set up a perimeter around the house, and a sergeant issued orders to Sanders through a loudspeaker in a patrol vehicle. Shortly after commands were given, a woman in the home came outside, Comanche County District Attorney Kyle Cabelka said.

Sanders was seen going out of the back door of the home. When an officer gave Sanders commands to show his hands, he immediately complied but then ran back into the home, Cabelka said.

Seconds later, Sanders walked out of the front door of the home and was confronted underneath a carport by Hinkle and Ronan.

According to footage from his body camera, Hinkle yelled "hands, hands" and "down, down, down, down."

In the video, Sanders appeared from around a refrigerator, his hands were visible and he appeared to be holding a ball cap, which he moved from his right hand to his left. Sanders then moved partially behind the refrigerator.

Hinkle shot four times at Sanders, who appeared to have his right hand raised above his head before falling to the ground. Hinkle then yelled  “down, down” and "hands, hands, hands," and "quit reaching."

In the video, Sanders sat up with his hands above his head. Hinkle then fired seven more times.

Ronan also fired four times at Sanders, Cabelka said, bringing the total of shots fired at Sanders to 15.

As the officers ordered Sanders to roll over on his stomach, he flailed, moaned and said:

“I’m down. I’m shot. I can’t breathe.”

Sanders died in an ambulance while being taken to Comanche County Memorial Hospital, Cabelka said.

The autopsy report revealed Sanders was struck 12 times, including in the abdomen, groin area, legs, arm and hand.

In May, following a months-long investigation by the OSBI, Cabelka charged Hinkle and Ronan in the death of Sanders. Cabelka said in a statement the shooting of Sanders “was not justified.” Cabelka said no weapon was found on Sanders nor in the area where he was shot.

However, Gary James, the criminal defense attorney for the officers, previously told The Oklahoman a gun was found on a table in the living room.

Ronan and Hinkle were released on a $25,000 bond. They face a minimum of four years in state prison if convicted in the fatal shooting of Sanders.

The civil lawsuit against the former Lawton police officers and the city claims Sanders did not pose a threat to police the night he was killed.

“Mr. Sanders’ hands were visible and did not contain weapons when he exited the home,” the lawsuit says. “Mr. Sanders put hands up in a manner universally understood by police officers to be a sign of compliance.”

John Ratliff, the city attorney for Lawton, said he could not comment on active litigation. Attorneys for Woods could not be reached Tuesday.

In April 2021, the district attorney’s office cleared Ronan in the shooting death of Zonterious Johnson, a 24-year-old Black man, after a foot pursuit from a restaurant where gunshots were heard.

Authorities determined that near an alley Johnson raised a gun after Ronan commanded him to drop the weapon.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Quadry Malik Sanders' mother sues Lawton, Oklahoma police officers