Members of that board have been chosen, but the board's powers aren't clear. MORRIS: You know, the city passed a ballot amendment last November setting up a civilian review board, and that passed overwhelmingly. What's the city doing to prevent this from happening? SHAPIRO: And, Frank, as you've reported, Columbus has a history of these kinds of incidents, white officers killing Black citizens under questionable circumstances. The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation is taking over the case. MORRIS: The Columbus Police Department isn't saying that much, other than confirming basic details. It requires us to pause, take a close look at the sequence of events, and, though it's not easy, wait for the facts. But the video shows that there is more to this. Under any circumstances, that is a horrendous tragedy. NED PETTUS JR: A teenage girl is dead, and she's dead at the hands of a police officer. Ned Pettus, Jr., director of public safety for the city of Columbus, says it's a tragic and complicated situation. MORRIS: Part of the official narrative was that the officer was trying to protect others in the fight, though that may be disputed by some. SHAPIRO: And, Frank, what are police and city officials saying in response to this video? You know, they just shot her like a dog in the street. And she didn't get the chance to even grow up because the police took that away from her. She was a loving child, and she was trying to do her best at this particular time. It's just, like, an out-of-body experience. I mean, I just don't even know what to say. Now the family and the community are grieving the death of a 16-year-old and asking questions. Ma’Khia rears back, and police say she appears to be holding a knife, as another woman cowers against a car. The officer pulls his gun and shouts, get down. Ma’Khia Bryant appears to lunge at one woman, who falls to the sidewalk. A police officer pulls up to a disturbance, a fight involving several people on a residential street and asks what's going on. MORRIS: So Columbus police released a body cam video of the killing less than six hours after it happened, which is highly unusual. SHAPIRO: Tell us what led up to this shooting. NPR's Frank Morris joins us from Columbus. The killing has sparked protests in Columbus and renewed calls for police reform. She was involved in a fight when the Columbus police officer arrived. Minutes before a Minneapolis judge announced that Derek Chauvin was guilty of the murder of George Floyd, a white police officer in Columbus, Ohio, shot and killed a Black teenage girl.
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