Police in Columbus, Ohio, on Tuesday night released bodycam footage showing an officer’s fatal shooting of a 16-year-old girl earlier in the day.
The truncated video begins at the moment the officer exits his vehicle and encounters the teen, who appears to be armed with a knife, chasing a girl outside a home.
The girl who was being chased falls on the lawn in front of the cop. The officer screams at the alleged suspect to “get down,” before the teen targets another girl on the hood of a car, the video shows.
As the teen swings the apparent weapon toward the second girl, the officer fires several shots at the alleged suspect, striking her.
Police have said they were called to the home at about 4:45 p.m. for a call of an attempted stabbing.
After the gunfire, two adults remained outside. “She’s a f—ing kid, man,” one of them can be heard telling the officer.
A black-handled blade resembling a kitchen knife can be seen in the video lying on the sidewalk next to the girl.
Police have not identified the teen, but family members told 10TV she was Ma’Khia Bryant.
Bryant’s aunt told the Columbus Dispatch that Bryant lived on the block at a foster home.
The shooting, which occurred shortly after Minneapolis cop Derek Chauvin was found guilty of murdering George Floyd, sparked protests in the city.
The officer who fired the fatal shoots has not been identified. But he has been taken off the streets pending an investigation, Interim Chief of Police Michael Woods said at a Tuesday night press briefing.
It was not immediately clear if the two other girls who were being attacked were injured.
Woods said that in the interest of transparency, the department moved quickly to release at least a portion of the bodycam footage.
State law allows police to use deadly force to protect themselves or others, and investigators will determine whether this shooting was such an instance, Woods said.
Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther also addressed the media Tuesday night, when he appeared visibly shaken.
“It’s a tragic day in the city of Columbus. Horrible, heartbreaking situation,” he said.
“Based on this footage, the officer took action to protect another young girl in our community,” the mayor said. “But a family is grieving tonight.”
The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation is conducting an independent probe of the shooting, the mayor said.
