Police in Ohio have made public bodycam footage capturing the tragic fatal shooting of Ta’Kiya Young, a 21-year-old pregnant black woman, on August 24. The incident occurred outside a Kroger grocery store in Blendon Township, a suburb of Columbus. The footage reveals officers approaching Young for alleged shoplifting, and as the confrontation unfolds, one officer is seen firing a shot towards her vehicle as she seems to drive in his direction.
The video shows the officers engaging with Ms. Young for about one minute before the shot is fired. They repeatedly instruct her to “get out of the car,” to which she responds, “For what?” Moments before the shot, she questions, “Are you going to shoot me?” After the shot is fired, officers break her car window when it rolls into a brick wall near the store entrance. Tragically, neither Ms. Young nor her unborn child survived the shooting.
Blendon Police Chief John Belford described the incident as a “tragedy” and extended condolences to Ms. Young’s family. The officers involved in the shooting, who remain unidentified, were on the scene for an unrelated call and have been placed on administrative leave. One officer, who stood at the car window, has returned to duty, while the officer who fired the shot remains on leave.
The family of Ta’Kiya Young issued a statement, labeling the shooting as “clearly a criminal act” and deeming it “avoidable.” The Blendon Township police department has enlisted the Ohio Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation to examine the incident.
Ta’Kiya Young, a mother of two boys aged six and three, was due to give birth in November.
