CINCINNATI (WXIX) – Cincinnati’s Black community is demanding the prosecution of everyone involved in the brawl that took place downtown July 26, including the man who appears to be beaten in multiple videos.

Following the indictment of six suspects for their alleged involvement, residents, religious leaders and elected officials still have many questions about the handling of the case and the investigation.

On Monday, those questions and concerns were expressed at New Prospect Baptist Church in the Roselawn neighborhood.

“What incited and who incited the rioting? If the riot is because of a slap, who incited the rioting?” Rev. Damon Lynch said to the crowd.

Lynch had just played one of the videos posted online from the downtown beating on a big screen for the church to see.

In the video, a man in a white shirt appears to have slapped another man in the face. More violence followed.

“And [mean]while the only people charged – again I’ll say it – are the ones who look like me,” Lynch continued.

Like the Cincinnati reverend, state Rep. Cecil Thomas (D-Cincinnati) is also wondering if and when the man in the video will face charges for inciting a riot.

Rep. Thomas remembers feeling disappointed after the city called for a press conference Aug. 6, announcing the arrest of the sixth suspect.

“Since that press conference, we have been asking why that individual, who slapped the Black person, that ignited what has been identified as aggravated rioting, wasn’t under arrest. One statement made by the chief – Chief Theetge – indicated, and this was at the press conference, that the person who was slapped had hired a lawyer and wasn’t talking to the police,” Thomas said.

However, he continued, that does not explain why the man was not charged with inciting a riot.

Senior Pastor Tracie Hunter, of Western Hills Brethren in Christ, describes the investigation of the case unjust.

As an attorney and former Hamilton County Juvenile Court judge, Hunter said she saw unequal prosecution between white and Black suspects. She says this practice has not changed in the county.

“It is easy to manipulate charges and that is the problem we have identified in this case. Six Black people have been indicted…, but the white individual that appeared to incite the fight or riot and the other white individuals involved have not been charged at all,” Hunter said.

In her statement, Hunter cited Ohio Revised Code 2917.01, which states that no person should partake in behavior that would urge or start violence, and Ohio Revised Code 2917.02, no one should participate with four or more people in disorderly conduct.

Hunter says the man not facing charges should be charged under these codes.

“He clearly intended to commit violence when he slapped the Black man and set off the chain of events,” she argued.

Black leaders and the community are asking for charges to be brought forth within the next 24 hours.

A legal analyst told FOX19 NOW that while a case could be made, it is not known publicly what caused the violence to occur.

Previously, Cincinnati police said there is more video that they have reviewed that has not been released to the public yet due to the ongoing investigation.

FOX19 NOW reached out to Cincinnati Police Chief Teresa Theetge for comment and is waiting to hear back.

The Hamilton County Prosecutor’s Office declined FOX19 NOW’s request for comment.

City Councilmembers Scotty Johnson and vice mayor Jan-Michele Kearney were also at the gathering Monday morning.

Councilman Johnson says the whole situation has been politicized following comments made by national leaders, like vice president JD Vance and U.S. Senator Bernie Moreno.

“This fight that took place July 26 has been, as Pastor Lynch pointed out, racially and politically skewed from the beginning,” Johnson said.

“We cannot bow to and allow political pressure to skew criminal investigations. We, as a city… we, as a city, have blown this one. We, as city, have missed the mark on this one. We cannot allow more than 24 years of diligent good work done by the Collaborative Agreement to take us down a road that we got off 24 years ago. It is obscene to allow that to happen. We cannot stand idly by, and I won’t as an elected official, to allow us to go backwards.”

The Collaborative Agreement was first created in 2001 to address and fix the city’s ongoing violence by investing in neighborhoods, engaging Cincinnati communities and creating a better understanding of police.

Johnson says the city was already on the correct track, but since the brawl made national headlines with commentary, he says the city needs to get back on the right track.

“We are not going anywhere until justice prevails,” he concluded.

Recently, city council has passed two ordinances that will promote safety: 1) revising youth curfew times with a plan for detaining juveniles out past curfew, and 2) allocating $2 million to policing, technology and programming.

As for the prosecution of more people involved, Johnson, who was a Cincinnati police detective, says he does not know if police will charge the man in the video.

He says it is best to let step back and let the investigators “do what they’re supposed to do.”

Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval released a statement via email to FOX19 NOW, stating that all participants in the brawl will need to be held accountable in order for “justice to fully be served.”

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