A family is demanding answers after a pregnant mom in Ohio was killed by police for allegedly stealing liquor.
The shocking murder took place on Thursday, August 24th, at a Kroger supermarket in Blendon Township. According to The Columbus Dispatch, police had already been present in the store’s parking lot helping a separate shopper with car issues when an employee alerted them to multiple people inside shoplifting alcohol. Several staffers told officers that Ta’Kiya Young, who was due to give birth in November, was among the group but that the others had already fled the scene.
Two cops approached Young’s vehicle, one standing in front of the car as the other went to her driver-side door. Both demanded she turn off the ignition and exit, though she refused their commands. Instead, officers claim Young tried ramming the officer in front of her. That is when the unidentified officer shot once through her windshield, striking Young. In a video explanation of the lethal events, Blendon Township Police Chief John Belford says after the shooting, Young tried driving away, and his officers chased her car on foot for nearly 50 feet before pulling the 21-year-old out of the vehicle and performing life-saving measures. Sadly, she later died at Mount Carmel St. Ann’s hospital, along with her unborn daughter.
Young leaves behind two sons, 6-year-old Ja’Kobie and 3-year-old Ja’Kenli. Her family is still waiting for more details and the bodycam footage to be released. However, even if she did drive her car towards the officer, her loved ones believe there was a better way the deputies could have handled things. Her father, Timothy Young, says officers should have shot out her tires instead of killing her.
“There’s no excuse for this s***,” he stated to reporters, a sentiment that her grandmother, Nadine Young, agrees with.
“She stole something from the store. You didn’t have to shoot the woman. She would have eventually gotten out of the car. You didn’t have to kill her and the baby,” she stated.
Belford said they will soon share the bodycam footage with the family before releasing it to the public.
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