Killing of Ta'Kiya Young

Last updated

Killing of Ta'Kiya Young
Ta'Kiya Young.jpg
Ta'Kiya Young, depicted in an undated photo.
DateAugust 24, 2023 (2023-08-24)
Location Blendon Township, Ohio, U.S.
Type Homicide by shooting, police killing, feticide
Participants3
DeathsYoung and her unborn child
Inquiries Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation
AccusedConnor Grubb
Charges

On August 24, 2023, Ta'Kiya Young, a 21-year-old woman, was shot to death by police officer Connor Grubb in Blendon Township, Ohio after she accelerated her vehicle. [1] The shooting occurred after police attempted to question her about shoplifting from a local grocery store. [2]

Contents

On August 13, 2024, officer Connor Grubb was charged with murder, manslaughter, and assault for the killing. [3]

Background

Ta'Kiya Young was a 21-year-old mother of two young sons, aged 6 and 3 at the time of her death; she was pregnant with a due date of November 2023.

Two officers, who were not publicly identified prior to August 2024, were involved in the shooting. Blendon Township cited Marsy's Law, which requires that police withhold the names of victims of violent crimes, for not releasing the names of the officers. [4] [5] Police considered the officer who shot Young a potential victim of attempted vehicular assault, as he was hit by the vehicle. Police considered the other officer a potential victim of misdemeanor assault, as his arm was inside the car window when Young accelerated. [6] [7] [8] Blendon Township Police Department also did not disclose for how many years each officer had worked, as it considered years of service to be an identifying marker due to the department's small size. [5] [7]

Ohio officials continually cite Marsy's Law to explain limited release of details related to police shootings. [4] [5] [9] According to The Marshall Project, law enforcement agencies in several states have increasingly used victims' rights statutes to shield the identities of officers involved in deadly use-of-force incidents, [4] a trend that has been criticized by advocates of open governance and transparency. [10]

Killing

Young was sitting in her car outside a Kroger grocery store around 6:30 pm when a store staff member approached nearby police and alleged that Young had stolen alcohol from the store. [11] Young was sitting in a four-door Lexus sedan that did not have a license plate and was parked in a handicap spot. [12] Two police officers approached the car and demanded several times that Young exit the vehicle. One officer stood near the driver's door and another stood in front of the vehicle, with his gun drawn. [13] Young remained behind the wheel and told the officers that she did not steal anything. [14]

After about one minute Young began driving toward officer Connor Grubb who fired one shot through the windshield, killing Young and her unborn baby. [15] [16] [17] Both officers offered assistance to Young after the shooting, with emergency services called within ten seconds of the shooting and a trauma kit was used on Young under two minutes of the shooting. [13] A passerby who was an emergency room doctor supported the police with medical assistance until paramedics arrived and transported Young to the hospital where she and her unborn child died from her injuries. [12]

Body camera footage of the interaction between Young and the officers has been released. [18] An attorney representing Young's family said a witness saw Young put down bottles of alcohol as she left the store. [19] In early September, newly released video footage appeared to show Young putting multiple bottles of alcohol into her purse and a tote bag while out of sight of the cash register. She and the two other women then allegedly left the store without paying. The tote bag full of liquor is visible in police bodycam footage as they drag her injured body from the car. [20]

Aftermath

Protest at the site of the shooting. Justice for Ta'Kiya Young 01 IMG 7199 (53154090240).jpg
Protest at the site of the shooting.

The Blendon Township police use-of-force policy provides that officers should try to move away from an approaching vehicle instead of firing their weapons. [19] Both of the officers were placed on paid administrative leave after the shooting, although the officer who did not fire his gun has since returned to duty. The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation is investigating the shooting. [21]

On October 4, 2023, it was announced that Young and her unborn child's deaths had been ruled as homicides, and that the case will be presented to a grand jury to decide whether to bring charges to the officer who fired at Young. [22] In December 2023, it was announced that a special prosecutor had been appointed to determine charges, if any, in the case. [23]

Indictment

On August 13, 2024, nearly a year after the killing, the shooter, Blendon Township officer Connor Grubb was indicted by a grand jury with four counts of murder, four counts of felonious assault, and two counts of involuntary manslaughter. Grubb is set to be arraigned on August 14. If convicted of murder, Grubb would face a minimum of 15 years in prison and a maximum of life with the possibility of parole after 25 years. [3]

Response

Attorneys for Young's family demanded a swift indictment of the officer responsible for the killings of Young and her unborn daughter. [24] [25] Young's family held a candlelight vigil the day after the shooting outside of her grandmother's home to honor Young and her unborn baby. [12]

Blendon Township Chief of Police John Belford called the shooting a "tragic situation for everyone". A police news release claimed that the officer near the front of the vehicle was "a victim of attempted vehicular assault" and the other, who had a part of his arm in the driver's side window, was "a victim of misdemeanor assault". In response to the incident, a member of the Fraternal Order of Police said that "A weapon is not just a firearm. A weapon is also a 2,000-pound vehicle that somebody puts into gear and is driving at you." [13]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Killing of John Crawford III</span> African-American man shot and killed by Beavercreek police officer Sean Williams

The killing of John Crawford III occurred on August 5, 2014. Crawford was a 22-year-old African-American man shot and killed by a police officer in a Walmart store in Beavercreek, Ohio, near Dayton, while he was holding a BB gun that was for sale in the store. The shooting was captured on surveillance video and led to protests from groups including the NAACP and the Black Lives Matter movement.

On July 19, 2015, in Cincinnati, Ohio, Samuel DuBose, an unarmed man, was fatally shot by Ray Tensing, a University of Cincinnati police officer, during an off-campus traffic stop for not having the front license plate on the vehicle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Killing of Keith Lamont Scott</span> 2016 American police shooting

Keith Lamont Scott, a 43-year-old African-American man, was fatally shot on September 20, 2016, in Charlotte, North Carolina, by Brentley Vinson, an African-American city police officer. It sparked both peaceful and violent protests led by Black Lives Matter in Charlotte.

Patrick Harmon was a 50-year-old African-American man fatally shot from behind by police officer Clinton Fox in Salt Lake City, Utah, on August 13, 2017. The shooting took place after Harmon was pulled over by an officer for riding a bicycle without proper lighting. The incident led to protests in Salt Lake City, some organized by Black Lives Matter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Killing of Tony McDade</span> Police killing of American man in Tallahassee, Florida

On May 27, 2020, after 11 a.m., a 38-year-old African-American transgender man, Tony McDade, was fatally shot in the Leon Arms apartment complex by an officer of the Tallahassee Police Department, following the fatal stabbing of Malik Jackson on nearby Saxon Street. Early reports of the incident misgendered McDade as a "woman", and on May 28, the police department described McDade as a woman who "identified as a man". On September 3, a Leon County grand jury found that the police use of force against McDade was justified. Police body camera showing McDade pointing a firearm at one of the police officers before being shot was also released.

On May 13, 2019, an African American woman, Pamela Turner, was shot and killed by a police officer from Baytown, Texas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Killing of Walter Wallace</span> October 2020 death of a man after a shooting in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

On October 26, 2020, Walter Wallace Jr., a 27-year-old African American man, was fatally shot by Philadelphia police officers Sean Matarazzo and Thomas Munz at 6100 Locust Street in the Cobbs Creek section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The two officers arrived in the area to respond to a domestic dispute. When they arrived, Wallace walked out of his house carrying a knife. The two officers backed away while telling him to drop the knife shortly before they each fired several rounds at Wallace, hitting him in the shoulder and chest. He later died from his wounds in the hospital. Wallace's family stated that Wallace was having a mental health crisis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Killing of Ma'Khia Bryant</span> Police shooting in Columbus, Ohio, US

On April 20, 2021, Ma'Khia Bryant, a 16-year-old girl, was fatally shot by police officer Nicholas Reardon in southeast Columbus, Ohio. Released body camera and security camera footage show Bryant brandishing a knife and charging two women consecutively, leading up to the moment Officer Reardon fired four shots; Bryant was struck at least once. Bryant immediately collapsed and was unresponsive. Reardon and other officers on the scene administered first aid, and she was transported to the hospital in critical condition, where she was later pronounced dead. Reactions from the public included both support of the actions of the officer and protests against the killing. The case was investigated by state authorities and then referred to local authorities. The case went to a grand jury and on March 11, 2022, it declined to charge Reardon. Her shooting, which prevented her from stabbing another girl, was later deemed a justifiable homicide.

On April 21, 2021, Andrew Brown Jr., a 42-year-old black American, was killed by a gunshot to the back of the head by the Sheriff Department in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, United States. The shooting occurred while deputies were serving drug-related search and arrest warrants at the Brown residence. The arrest warrant, issued on April 20, was for possession with intent to sell "approximately three grams of cocaine." Seven officers were placed on leave as a result of the shooting.

On April 5, 2021, Micronesian 16-year-old Iremamber Sykap was killed on Kalākaua Avenue when Honolulu police officer Geoffrey Thom fired 10 rounds at Sykap through the rear window of a stolen car after it had stopped at an intersection following a police pursuit. Thom was charged with second-degree murder for the shooting, and two other Honolulu Police Department officers were charged with attempted second-degree murder. The charges were dismissed in district court on August 18, 2021.

On June 27, 2022, at approximately 12:30 a.m., Akron, Ohio, police officers shot Jayland Walker, a 25-year-old American from Akron. Following an attempted traffic stop and car chase, footage showed an officer saying that Walker’s car is slowing down, having reached speeds of more than 50 miles per hour (80 km/h) in residential neighborhoods. Seconds later, Walker, wearing a ski mask, exited the vehicle and began to flee on foot. Officers pursued on foot and fired more than 90 times at Walker. Autopsy results showed that Walker's body was hit by more than 46 bullets.

On August 30, 2022, 20-year-old African-American man Donovan Lewis was shot and killed by Officer Ricky Anderson of the Columbus Division of Police (CDP) in the Hilltop neighborhood of Columbus, Ohio as officers served a warrant at his apartment. Police were serving a warrant against Lewis for domestic violence against his pregnant girlfriend, assault and improper handling of a firearm. After officers detained two men at the apartment, police opened the door to Lewis's bedroom, after which point Anderson fired a single shot at Lewis who was laying in bed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Killing of Sonya Massey</span> 2024 police killing of a woman in Illinois, U.S.

On July 6, 2024, Sonya Massey, a 36-year-old black woman, was shot and killed in her home by Sean Grayson, a white deputy of the Sangamon County Sheriff's Office in Woodside Township near Springfield, Illinois, United States.

References

  1. Richard, Lawrence (September 1, 2023). "Body camera footage of controversial fatal police shooting in Ohio released to the public". Fox News. Archived from the original on October 14, 2023. Retrieved October 13, 2023.
  2. "Surveillance video shows Ta'Kiya shoplifting bottles of alcohol before being fatally shot by police". WBNS TV. September 8, 2023. Archived from the original on February 20, 2024. Retrieved October 13, 2023.
  3. 1 2 "Ohio officer who fatally shot pregnant 21-year-old Ta'Kiya Young charged with murder". CNN . August 13, 2024.
  4. 1 2 3 Lartey, Jamiles (September 9, 2023). "When Police Kill and Use Victims' Rights Laws to Stay Anonymous". The Marshall Project. Archived from the original on September 20, 2023. Retrieved September 21, 2023.
  5. 1 2 3 Lagatta, Erin (September 1, 2023). "A pregnant Ohio mother's death by police sparked outrage. What we know about Ta'Kiya Young". USA TODAY. Archived from the original on September 2, 2023. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  6. Brown, Nicki; McCluskey, Mitchell (September 9, 2023). "Surveillance video released Friday shows Ta'Kiya Young inside store then encountering police before fatal shooting". CNN. Archived from the original on September 11, 2023. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  7. 1 2 "Ta'Kiya Young's family, police react to bodycam footage of fatal Blendon Township shooting". The Columbus Dispatch. Archived from the original on November 8, 2023. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  8. Bellware, Kim (September 8, 2023). "Police use a victim's rights law to protect officer who shot Ta'Kiya Young". Washington Post. ISSN   0190-8286. Archived from the original on September 9, 2023. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  9. Bruner, Bethany (July 13, 2023). "Columbus city attorney explains why names, bodycam video from police shootings is limited". The Columbus Dispatch. Archived from the original on October 13, 2023. Retrieved September 21, 2023.
  10. Bellware, Kim (September 8, 2023). "Police use a victim's rights law to protect officer who shot Ta'Kiya Young".{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  11. "Coroner's office confirms pregnant woman killed in shooting involving police at Blendon Township Kroger". 10tv.com. August 24, 2023. Archived from the original on August 28, 2023. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  12. 1 2 3 Behrens, Cole (August 26, 2023). "Family of pregnant woman killed in police shooting hold candlelight vigil, seek answers". USA TODAY. Archived from the original on September 2, 2023. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  13. 1 2 3 Brown, Nicki; McCluskey, Mitchell (September 9, 2023). "Surveillance video released Friday shows Ta'Kiya Young inside store then encountering police before fatal shooting". CNN. Archived from the original on September 11, 2023. Retrieved September 11, 2023.
  14. "Bodycam footage shows fatal shooting of pregnant Black woman by Ohio police - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. September 1, 2023. Archived from the original on September 2, 2023. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  15. McCluskey, Nicki Brown,Mitchell (September 9, 2023). "Surveillance video released Friday shows Ta'Kiya Young inside store then encountering police before fatal shooting". CNN. Archived from the original on September 11, 2023. Retrieved September 29, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  16. Levenson, Michael (September 1, 2023). "Video Released of Officer Fatally Shooting Pregnant Black Woman". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331. Archived from the original on September 2, 2023. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  17. "Bodycam footage shows moments before pregnant woman's fatal shooting by Ohio police officer". NBC News. September 1, 2023. Archived from the original on September 2, 2023. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  18. Matza, Max (September 1, 2023). "Bodycam video shows Ohio police fatally shooting pregnant black woman". BBC News. Archived from the original on September 2, 2023. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  19. 1 2 "Ta'Kiya Young's family urges officer's arrest after video shows him killing the pregnant Black woman". apnews.com. September 1, 2023. Archived from the original on September 1, 2023. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  20. Additional bodycam footage is released in the death of pregnant Black mother Ta'Kiya Young Archived September 12, 2023, at the Wayback Machine , Associated Press, September 8, 2023
  21. Hendrickson, Samantha (September 1, 2023). "Pregnant woman's family urges Ohio cop's arrest after video shows him killing her". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on September 1, 2023. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  22. "Ta'Kiya Young autopsy released, confirms single gunshot hit pregnant woman's heart". Archived from the original on November 9, 2023. Retrieved November 9, 2023.
  23. "BCI completes investigation into deadly police shooting of Ta'Kiya Young".
  24. "Police in Ohio release body camera video showing officer fatally shooting pregnant woman Ta'Kiya Young". ABC News. Archived from the original on September 2, 2023. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  25. Brown, Nicki; Sgueglia, Kristina (September 1, 2023). "Ohio police release video of fatal police shooting of pregnant 21-year-old Ta'Kiya Young". CNN. Archived from the original on September 2, 2023. Retrieved September 2, 2023.