The officer who shot and killed Ma’Khia Bryant, 16, in Columbus, has been cleared of criminal wrongdoing, Ohio prosecutors announced on Friday.
Officer Nicholas Reardon killed Ma’Khia in April 2021 as she lunged with a knife at a young woman, seconds after shoving another woman to the pavement. Bryant was black. Reardon is a white man.
Police were called to Ma’Khia’s foster home after a group of girls threatened to stab members of the residence.
The killing prompted the US Justice Department to conduct an investigation into the police department in the state capital of Ohio.
Ma’Khia had four shots fired at her. The cause of death was listed as homicide by the coroner, which is a medical determination used in situations where someone died as a direct result of someone else but is not a legal finding. It is not indicative of criminal intent.
The killing intensified turmoil over shootings by police of African-Americans and shed light on the Ohio foster care system.
“Under Ohio law, the use of deadly force by a police officer is justified when there exists an immediate or imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury to the officer or another,” special prosecutors Tim Merkle and Gary Shroyer said in announcing the grand jury decision.
They stated that the decision was made after a thorough investigation of the shooting.
Shai-onta Craig, the woman Ma’Khia was attacking, had lived at the residence but returned and started arguring with her, according to Craig’s police statement, which was published on Friday.
Reardon informed investigators that he didn’t really think utilizing Mace or a “hands-on” approach would have ended up working because of the knife in Ma’Khia’s hand, the fact that he was the only officer on the scene, and the fact that Ma’Khia appeared much bigger than him.
“At the time I fired my weapon, I was in fear for the life of the female in pink,” Reardon explained, making reference to Craig.
According to the Columbus Public Safety Department, the city will conduct an internal investigation to evaluate whether Reardon abided by department policy.
“There should have been other non-deadly options available to deal with this situation” Ma’Khia’s family said. The family also demanded “full-scale changes” to Ohio’s foster-care system.
Source: The Guardian
