Miller was hit by 12 bullets in the fatal shooting

June 12, 1999
Web posted at: 4:09 a.m. EDT (0809 GMT)

RIVERSIDE, California (CNN) -- The four officers who shot and killed a 19-year-old woman last December, hitting her with 12 bullets, were given notice Friday that they are to be fired.

The termination notices were served after the completion of the Riverside Police Department's internal investigation into the incident, in which Tyisha Miller died in a hail of gunfire -- sparking national protests by civil rights groups. Miller was black, the officers are white.

The officers have the right to appeal and will likely meet with Riverside Police Chief Jerry Carroll in the first two weeks of July to plead their case, according to the officer's attorney Bill Hadden.

Hadden says if terminated the officers will aggressively "pursue every legal remedy against the city."

The Riverside Police Department did not return CNN's calls asking for comment.

On December 28, police received a 911 call from Miller's cousin, who said she was unconscious in her car with a handgun in her lap. The officers arrived and tried to retrieve the gun, according to their report, and said they opened fire when Miller allegedly reached for the weapon.

Riverside County District Attorney Grover Trask last month said a thorough investigation showed that the four officers -- Daniel Hotard, Wayne Stewart, Michael Alagna and Paul Bugar -- should not be held criminally liable for the shooting.

Federal investigators are still looking at the case.

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