OH - Ma’Khia Bryant, 16, fatally shot multiple times by Columbus police officer, 20 April 2021

New Posts

Status
Not open for further replies.
Now folks, its the NYP... await further info.
The Ohio police officer who shot to death a black teenage girl in a disturbing encounter with a knife appears to be a military-trained marksman specializing in firing a gas-powered assault rifle, according to a report Wednesday.

Columbus police officer Nicholas Reardon — who was placed on paid leave after fatally shooting 16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant Tuesday — is a U.S. Air National Guardsman who received an expert marksman badge with a M4 Carbine rifle, according to the Daily Beast.

Reardon, who joined the department in 2019, is also the son of Air Force veteran and retired Columbus Division of Police Sergeant Edward “Ted” Reardon, according to the outlet, which cited social media and other reports.
Cop who fatally shot Ma'Khia Bryant is military-trained marksman: report
 
coffeeandacig said:
Why are we working "blind"? What does it matter if the perp called? What does it matter if she had issues? A policeman stopped the attempted murder of a young unarmed teen girl.
Click to expand...
It matters because context is important for comprehension.
Even though she carried a knife and allegedly attempted to kill pink girl, she was still a human being.
She had a life, we'd like to know about her life, who she was and what brought about her violence.
It's what we do here.
We do not dehumanise them.
 
16-year-old girl fatally shot by police in Ohio
A statement released on behalf of the Bryant family and Ma'Khia's mother, Paula, said they wanted to "respectfully request justice for Ma'Khia Bryant."

"As a family we are all saddened by the tragic and unnecessary death of Ma’Khia," Paula and the Bryant family said in a statement to ABC News. "She was loved by many and had family throughout both Mansfield and in Columbus, Ohio. Ma’Khia was a good student, a good person, and did not deserve what happened to her. We want to remind everyone Ma’Khia was only a 16-year-old teenage girl. We are deeply disturbed by the disproportionate and unjustified use of force in this situation."
 
obripe said:
Honestly, I don't think that would be the conversation. I can't think of a single instance when a cop has been critisized for NOT killing somebody. Let me know if there's an example I'm missing?
Click to expand...
I can remember plenty of criticism of the armed officer who failed to intervene during a high school shooting in Florida. I think he even lost his job.
 
scriabina said:
True, I don't know if I have it in me to watch the video again, but I didn't notice the knife when she pushed the first girl down. Was it clear MB had the knife from the beginning? (ETA: I see someone above mentions they saw MB holding the knife from the beginning, but still the scenario posed in paragraph 2 remains valid.) Is it possible she was able to wrestle the knife away from girl #1 and then run to girl #2 to "stand [her] ground"? The recently revised "stand your ground" law in Ohio eliminates the duty to retreat before using lethal force.*

Say you're at your house in Ohio and some girls showed up in your front yard threatening you and your family. You call the police. If I were in that situation, I would stay inside. However, others might handle the situation differently. You might feel compelled to protect your home and those inside more aggressively. You might feel scared, enraged, adrenaline pumping through your body. Perhaps this was the case with MB. Even if she grabbed a kitchen knife and ran outside to attack the trespassers, wouldn't that be legal by Ohio law? This could certainly cause confusion for officers who arrive on the scene and someone is in the middle of "standing their ground" with a weapon. All they see is someone attacking someone else. They don't know the circumstances. And so they end up shooting the person who had called for help in the first place, the person who was legally attempting to defend themselves.

*My comments do not mean to imply I support that new Ohio law.
Click to expand...

The 2nd girl, wearing pink, and being pressed up against the car, by MaKhia, was holding a puppy. She did not seem to be threatening Ma'Khia's life in any way. She had no reason to 'stand her ground' with a lethal weapon, against a girl holding a puppy in her arms, imo.

If MaKhia was simply defending herself, why didn't she drop the knife, after the cop asked her to do so, urgently?
 
M may have only been 16 years old but watching the video she appeared to be a strong fully grown woman. I don't think age came into how the police man assessed the situation. Also M seemed to escalate her behaviour when the police appeared. The girl who fell was very lucky as she could have been the first victim.
I would like to know how that man got to kicking the first girl in the head.
It was a very chaotic situation and that policeman was first on the scene the other officers did not arrive until the shots were being fired according to the videos.
MOO
 
Let's be honest---would we be speaking about this differently if it was a male holding the knife, and threatening the teen girl in pink?

Would people be hating on the cop if he shot a male with a knife? Or what if it was a white male attacking the black girl?

Would the community still be asking for the cop to be fired and arrested?
 
katydid23 said:
Let's be honest---would we be speaking about this differently if it was a male holding the knife, and threatening the teen girl in pink?

Would people be hating on the cop if he shot a male with a knife? Or what if it was a white male attacking the black girl?

Would the community still be asking for the cop to be fired and arrested?
Click to expand...
Good point.
I don't know.
But an investigation is ongoing.
It will determine whether the officer acted correctly or had other options, less lethal.
I think we have to await the results of that, otherwise it becomes Monday morning quarterbacking.
 
Ohio's 'Stand Your Ground' Statute.
scriabina said:
.... The recently revised "stand your ground" law in Ohio eliminates the duty to retreat before using lethal force.*....
Click to expand...
@scriabina sbm bbm Yes, in some/many circumstances. I've not followed this case closely enough to know info needed to process whether or how Ohio's new law* could apply. For ex: On whose driveway (property) did the physical confrontation occur? Was it Ma'Khia's Mother, her Foster Mother, or someone else? Even if we had more info about certain aspects of the shooting, imo W/S ToS would likely bar discussion on these matters. my2ct. But we can look at part of the law itself:

"Sec. 2901.05. (A) Every person accused of an offense is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, and the burden of proof for all elements of the offense is upon the prosecution. The burden of going forward with the evidence of an affirmative defense, and the burden of proof, by a preponderance of the evidence, for an affirmative defense other than self defense, defense of another, or defense of the accused's residence presented as described in division (B)(1) of this section, is upon the accused.
(B)(1) A person is allowed to act in self-defense, defense of another, or defense of that person's residence. If, at the trial of a person who is accused of an offense that involved the person's use of force against another, there is evidence presented that tends to support that the accused person used the force in self-defense, defense of another, or defense of that person's residence, the prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused person did not use the force in self-defense, defense of another, or defense of that person's residence, as the case may be." bbm

Yes, there's more to the statute, but my brain is tapped out for the night, I need to put it on the charger.
_________________________________________________
* https://search-prod.lis.state.oh.us/solarapi/v1/general_assembly_133/bills/sb175/EN/06?format=pdf
Senate Bill 175 | The Ohio Legislature
 
The FBI only launched its national use-of-force collection system in 2019, and the largest database that tracks police shootings and other deadly encounters doesn’t routinely identify officers.

NBC News requested a decade of records from a dozen law enforcement agencies across the United States with higher than average rates of police killings, according to Mapping Police Violence, an analysis project based on public databases, obituaries and other sources. Records obtained from eight of these departments through public record requests and official databases show more than 150 officers who fired weapons in two or more intentional shootings across eight cities: Columbus, Ohio; Dallas; Mesa, Arizona; Oklahoma City; Orlando
Most officers never fire their guns. But some kill multiple people — and are still on the job.
 
Ninja Bunny said:
Just watched the video multiple times, looks like a justified shooting. Bryant, holding a knife, had charged the girl in pink and reasonably looked like she was about to stab her. The cop probably saved the pink girl’s life.
Click to expand...

We can agree that shooting her was reasonable action, but multiple times that ended in her death? This is the question, not whether he shot her. He was apparently a trained military marksman, so wouldn't he have been able to disable her or stop her from stabbing the female in pink without killing her? There is also the view from the UK, that their officers disarm knife wielding teens without killing them. No doubt he saved the pink clothed female from serious injury or even death, but considering multiple variables including his prior experience, could MB's death be avoided?
 
tayaway said:
We can agree that shooting her was reasonable action, but multiple times that ended in her death? This is the question, not whether he shot her. He was apparently a trained military marksman, so wouldn't he have been able to disable her or stop her from stabbing the female in pink without killing her? There is also the view from the UK, that their officers disarm knife wielding teens without killing them. No doubt he saved the pink clothed female from serious injury or even death, but considering multiple variables including his prior experience, could MB's death be avoided?
Click to expand...
That's the only issue here, is it not?
Was his use of force disproportionate?
Could he have used other methods or fewer shots?
Great he saved the pink girl but if he had done it without killing the perpetrator it would be really great, not mediocre.
 
scriabina said:
True, I don't know if I have it in me to watch the video again, but I didn't notice the knife when she pushed the first girl down. Was it clear MB had the knife from the beginning? (ETA: I see someone above mentions they saw MB holding the knife from the beginning, but still the scenario posed in paragraph 2 remains valid.) Is it possible she was able to wrestle the knife away from girl #1 and then run to girl #2 to "stand [her] ground"? The recently revised "stand your ground" law in Ohio eliminates the duty to retreat before using lethal force.*

Say you're at your house in Ohio and some girls showed up in your front yard threatening you and your family. You call the police. If I were in that situation, I would stay inside. However, others might handle the situation differently. You might feel compelled to protect your home and those inside more aggressively. You might feel scared, enraged, adrenaline pumping through your body. Perhaps this was the case with MB. Even if she grabbed a kitchen knife and ran outside to attack the trespassers, wouldn't that be legal by Ohio law? This could certainly cause confusion for officers who arrive on the scene and someone is in the middle of "standing their ground" with a weapon. All they see is someone attacking someone else. They don't know the circumstances. And so they end up shooting the person who had called for help in the first place, the person who was legally attempting to defend themselves.

*My comments do not mean to imply I support that new Ohio law.
Click to expand...

Yes, passing the Stand Your Ground Law is a very big mistake. Taken literally, it would mean the officer should do nothing and allow Ma'Khia to stab the other girl and anyone else standing in front of the house.

Of course, he would have to call out first to ask which persons in the crowd live in the home and assume they are being honest. Actually,with Stand Your Ground, there's no need for LE to even respond to the call. JMO
 
Last edited:
kittythehare said:
That's the only issue here, is it not?
Was his use of force disproportionate?
Could he have used other methods or fewer shots?
Great he saved the pink girl but if he had done it without killing the perpetrator it would be really great, not mediocre.
Click to expand...
If I went after someone with a knife, I should expect that my own life would be in danger.

For every action there is an equal but opposite reaction. Charging someone with a knife can easily end up with disastrous results. I think everyone should know and expect that.

This officer saved a girl's life by making this split second decision. It pains me that the scrutiny and judgment coming down on him is making him out to be the bad guy---instead of the teen with the deadly weapon and aggressive actions.
 
everybodhi said:
How does this compare to a mass shooter killing 17 people with an AR15?
Click to expand...
The question was asked whether a police officer has ever been criticized for not shooting someone. The Florida high school shooting is an example of that happening.

If that police officer at Stoneman Douglas high school had spied the shooter aiming at his first victim and shot him dead before he'd had the chance to kill anyone, would he have been criticized for that too?
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

DNASolves

Who is Escambia County John Doe (1989)?

Members online

... and 81 more.
Total: 3,292 (members: 82, guests: 3,210)

Online statistics

Members online
82
Guests online
3,210
Total visitors
3,292
Totals may include hidden visitors.

Forum statistics

Threads
592,285
Messages
17,966,686
Members
228,735
Latest member
dil2288
Back
Top