Canton police shooting: Zachary Fornash family and attorney to hold news conference today

CANTON – An attorney for the family of Zachary Fornash, a married 24-year-old father of three killed by a city police officer last week, has scheduled a press conference for 1:30 p.m. today to talk about the shooting.

Mentor-based attorney Bobby DiCello is expected to appear before the media with members of Fornash's family.

"Bobby DiCello, counsel for the Fornash family, will address recent police body camera video showing Zachary’s tragic death and the erroneous assumption by the police officers that he was brandishing a weapon, which turned out to be pellet gun," said a statement by DiCello's law firm DiCello Levitt.

“Zachary wanted to be known as a good father. He loved to make people laugh and play with his children. His life was cut short so tragically due a systemic issue across law enforcement agencies: the propensity of police officers to pull the trigger instead of taking the time to investigate and de-escalate a situation. We are deeply saddened by this horrific killing of a loving father who is leaving behind a beautiful family,” Bobby DiCello said in the statement.

Related: 'He was not a bad person.' Family, supporters grieve loss of man shot by Canton police

What led to Canton police shooting Zachary Fornash?

On Dec. 5, Canton police officer Garrett Marino was investigating a report at Skyland Terrace Apartments that a man had shown a gun in an argument, police said. While driving his police cruiser, Marino spotted Fornash standing or walking by an apartment building. Fornash's apartment was nearby across Alan Page Drive SE.

According to his body camera footage later released by police, Marino quickly exited his vehicle with his weapon drawn, said that Fornash had a gun and then screamed repeatedly at Fornash to get onto the ground or to put his hands onto his head or be shot.

Fornash kept walking away from the officer with his hands at his sides or in his pocket. When Fornash turned his body toward the left, Marino shot him multiple times. Fornash later died at Aultman Hospital. It turned out Fornash had a pellet gun or BB gun and not a real gun.

The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation is reviewing the shooting. As is standard after a police shooting, Marino was placed on paid administrative leave. It's not clear if he's returned to duty.

Activists who've demonstrated against past police shootings helped the family organize a vigil on Dec. 7 near where Fornash was killed. His family had calling hours and a funeral service for him at Campfield-Hickman-Collier funeral home in Barberton on Tuesday.

Related: Canton police officer shoots, kills 24-year-old man; state to review incident

Related: 'It's a BB gun.' Canton police say man fatally shot by officer had pellet gun

Bobby DiCello served as ABC News analyst during trial of Derek Chauvin

According to DiCello Levitt's website, DiCello is based at the firm's Mentor office. The firm said it also has offices in Washington, D.C.; Birmingham, Alabama; Chicago; New York; and San Diego. The firm says civil and human rights litigation is among its many practice areas.

DiCello was a legal analyst for ABC News during the trial in 2021 of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who was convicted of murdering George Floyd. He also was one of the attorneys for Arnold Black who filed a lawsuit against the city of East Cleveland alleging police brutality.

A Cuyahoga County Common Pleas jury in 2016 found that that city's police officers had unjustifiably beaten Black during and after a traffic stop in 2014 and kept him confined in a police department storage room for four days without a toilet or running water. The jury awarded Black $50 million in damages, and a state appeals court affirmed the jury's decision.

DiCello's law firm profile says, "Bobby DiCello’s practice encompasses locally and nationally significant cases across a broad range of topics, with a focus on restoring the human dignity stolen by civil rights abuses, catastrophic injuries, defective products, and corporate misconduct. Bobby is a force in the trial bar. He has obtained record verdicts in cases thought unwinnable, while, at the same time, leading cutting-edge research into juror decision-making in the politically polarized jury system."

The press conference will be at the offices of Stark Community Support Network in northeast Canton.

This story will be updated.

Reach Robert at robert.wang@cantonrep.com. X formerly known as Twitter: @rwangREP.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Bobby DiCello to discuss Canton police shooting of Zachary Fornash