The family of Julius E. Tate will gather on North Champion Avenue and Mt. Vernon Avenue on December 7th at 3 pm to commemorate and raise awareness of Julius’s untimely death at the hands and guns of Columbus police. It will be his death’s second anniversary, and a utility pole on this corner has been decorated in his honor.
According to Columbus police, Julius’ death was the result of a sting operation to apprehend an armed robber who was doing swap-and-sell meetings. Questions linger, however, regarding Julius’s actions before his death. Even so, the sting should have been handled in a way so not to kill the teenager.
Police in plain clothes claim Julius pulled a gun on them, and then a sharpshooter in hiding fired. But Julius’s girlfriend claims he was unarmed, testimony she gave in a sworn affidavit. Days later the girlfriend, Masonique Saunders, was charged in connection with his killing.
At the time, Saunders’s mother told WBNS 10TV the charge was an attempt to silence her. Masonique is currently serving a three-year sentence in state prison after taking a plea deal.
An autopsy report released to the media by the Franklin County Coroner’s Office claims 16-year-old Julius was shot once in the head and the chest, and three times in the abdomen.
However, this information contradicts the official autopsy given to Jamita Malone, Julius’ mother.
Amidst the Black Lives Matter protests being held and the Presidential Election, Julius’ family wants to make sure his story is known, and his killers are held accountable.
The memorial of Julius’ death comes two months after The March Against Columbus was held in his honor. The march and protest, led by Julius’s sister Maryam, started downtown and moved to Mt. Vernon Avenue. The march and protest lasted 16 days.
“When Julius died, no one told me,” said his mother Jamita Malone. “Till this day they (The Columbus Division of Police) have not knocked on my door and told me.”
Malone said even if the Columbus police didn’t have the courage to tell her to her face what had happened, her son’s soul did.
“But I knew. My son came to me that night...and I felt a cold hand on my arm, and I got chills. The (Columbus police) lies never sat right with me. Julius came to me that night and he said, ‘Mommy save me.’’’
Ms. Malone believes she has been misled by not only by Columbus police, but the City of Columbus as well. She feels she has been forced into silence, and her son’s case has been forgotten. She hopes to be able to tell Julius’ true story come his memorial day, and also confront those she feels have wronged her.
Contact Maryam Muhammad (beautifulqueeny6@gmail.com) for further details.
