The family of Nelsonville resident Michael Whitmer is suing the former Hocking College police officer who shot and killed Whitmer, 37, while on duty last year.
Cecil Morrison entered a no contest plea for criminal charges related to Michael Whitmer’s death in April. He surrendered his Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy certificate but did not serve jail time.
Chelsea Whitmer, Michael Whitmer’s surviving spouse, filed the suit through her husband’s estate in July. She said her primary motivation was to see greater accountability for Morrison.
“I don’t think anyone—still to this day—has been held responsible like I want them to be held,” said Chelsea Whitmer.
On July 27, 2021, while on duty as a Hocking College police officer, Morrison assisted the Nelsonville Police Department’s response to the Whitmer residence, according to case materials. A neighbor called 911 that day, prompting the police response with a complaint of a domestic dispute, according to a recording of the call obtained by the Independent.
In body camera footage released by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, Morrison is seen arriving on the scene to find Michael Whitmer, apparently unarmed, in his car with a child identified in the lawsuit as Whitmer’s son, then 4 years old. Michael Whitmer attempts to reverse his car out of his driveway multiple times in an apparent attempt to flee. Morrison runs behind Michael Whitmer’s moving vehicle and fires several gunshots into the vehicle.
Michael Whitmer died of seven gunshot wounds, according to the Logan Daily News.
Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio Eastern Division, the lawsuit argues that Morrison violated Michael Whitmer’s constitutional rights to freedom from unreasonable seizure and force during the incident. The complaint further argues Morrison caused Michael Whitmer physical pain and suffering, emotional trauma and death.
In a response filed in September, Morrison denies that he broke the law during the course of the police response and argues his actions when he shot and killed Michael Whitmer were protected by qualified immunity and law enforcement immunity. The response argues, “Mr. Whitmer used his car as a weapon and steered it toward [Morrison] multiple times.”
Morrison’s response denies the lawsuit’s allegations that he had the opportunity to position himself out of the path of Whitmer’s vehicle and that the use of deadly force was unjustified.
Attorneys on both sides declined to comment for this story, including about the possible impact of Morrion’s criminal plea on the civil proceedings.
Chelsea Whitmer said the family is entitled to relief, having suffered serious financial hardship as a result of her husband’s death. She said she has been unable to work since the incident, meaning the household has lost two incomes; she has been unable to purchase a new car since the family car was wrecked in the incident; and the family also incurred costs for medical care, including for post-traumatic stress disorder suffered by her son.
“You could give me $20 million, and I would (still) redo that day over—but it’s not for nothing, the financial aspect; (relief) would make life a little bit easier,” Chelsea Whitmer said. “I worry about stuff in the long term, like my kids going to school, going to college, or whatever they choose to do.”
Chelsea Whitmer said many impacts of her husband’s death cannot be quantified.
“It wasn’t just Michael, it was (his childrens’) dad, all the memories they were going to make with their dad,” Chelsea Whitmer said. “I had just married him. They took away someone’s brother, someone’s dad, someone’s son.”
Any damages awarded through the case would be distributed to Michael Whitmer’s next of kin, including his surviving spouse, parents and children, according to Ohio Revised Code.
In a statement shared with the Independent, Michael Whitmer’s mother, April Whitmer, described the loss of her son as “an enormous black hole in our lives from which this family will never recover.”
Michael Whitmer’s sister, Nikkia Hunter, said Morrison “needs to be held accountable for taking away the future of not only Chelsea and the boys, but also me and my parents.”
“My brother was my best friend,” Hunter added. “The one person who was supposed to be with me always—my permanent, my constant, my biggest protector—is gone. I was robbed of my future with my brother.”
The defense may request judgment on its claim that Morrison’s actions were protected by qualified immunity and police officer immunity as the case moves forward.
Judge James L. Graham presides over the case. Ronald Reagan nominated Graham to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio in 1986.
Case materials:
