'She was a child.' White House comments on Ma'Khia Bryant shooting

[TexasTowelie]

Source: Columbus Dispatch

The White House commented on the Ma'Khia Bryant shooting in Columbus calling it “tragic.”

Ma'Khia Bryant, 16, was shot and killed after officers responded to a 911 call about an attempted stabbing in the 3100 block of Legion Lane on the East Side.

The shooting happened about 20 minutes before the guilty verdict was announced in the trial of Derek Chauvin, a former Minneapolis police officer who killed George Floyd.

“She was a child,” press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters Wednesday. “We're thinking of her friends and family in the communities that are hurting and grieving her loss. We know that police violence disproportionately impacts Black and Latino people in communities and that Black women and girls, like Black men and boys, experience higher rates of police violence. We also know that there are particular vulnerabilities that children in foster care, like Ma’Khia, face.”

Read more: https://www.dispatch.com/story/news/2021/04/21/white-house-comments-makhia-bryant-shooting-columbus/7323088002/

[exboyfil]

1. I would have added that the WH was grateful

That no other children where injured by either being shot or stabbed. It is a tragedy and an indictment of the entire social system that needs to change. Whatever brought a 16 year old to the decision of pursuing two other children and attempting to stab them.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

101. It wasn't just Ma'Khia who attacked the girls.

While Ma'Khia was attacking her second victim (in pink), a guy delivered a vicious kick to the head of Ma'Khia's first victim who was on the ground at the cop's feet. There was enough force to bowl the girl over.

I hope he's being investigated for his part in this attack.

[Jilly_in_VA]

2. I am appalled

that the mayor, in a tweet, called her a "young woman", and said that she "lost her life" as if it was some kind of ACCIDENT, FFS.

[LisaL]

4. Child was armed with a knife and tried to stab another child.

NT

[Jilly_in_VA]

5. And

FOUR ADULT MALES cannot take down a child? Yes, I am appalled. Sit down.

[caber09]

6. You are kidding, right? In the 9 seconds before she stabbed the other girl?

This is why its good that there are body cams...to see when the cops are guilty...and when they arent. He probably saved the girl against the cars life...and def prevented her from getting stabbed....there were literally seconds, he asked what was going on, a girl was chased, another girl was chased WITH A KNIFE! and was about to get STABBED...if you were the girl against the car, did you want the cop to stop and ask questions? This isnt another George Floyd case. Come on... He literally saved the other girls life.

[LearnedHand]

7. Dylan Roof: still alive

Kyle Rittenhouse: Still alive. You get the idea.

[LisaL]

8. They weren't apprehended in the process of doing something.

NT

[caber09]

9. Rittenhouse was a travesty agreed...

Dylan Roof I believe escaped and then surrendered..if Bryant stopped put down knife and surrendered, then was shot then you'd have a case...in THIS particular case the officer literally saved the life of another African American girl...should he have waiting until the girl against the car was bludgeoned?

[LearnedHand]

10. I have trouble with zero or execution

Especially as it is applied so unevenly to the Black community.

[Jilly_in_VA]

12. So do I

And apparently people here implying the cops couldn't run.

[caber09]

15. Are you serious? Had he ran the other girl would've been stabbed

So you are about to be stabbed...you wouldnt want the cop to save you? Any delay or your "cop could've ran" and she would've stabbed the other girl. Seriously? I mean come on.

[Jilly_in_VA]

18. Seems to me

you are trying to justify the shooting of a child from one teeny CLIP the cops chose to release. You couldn't wait to see any other angles. Cops had 9 seconds to take her down and there were 4 of them. You can't tell from that angle even how close she may have been or whether she was really even TRYING to stab the other girl or just menacing. You probably tried to justify the killing of Adam Toledo too.

[caber09]

19. You seem awfully willing to sacrifice the other girl to try to make a point..

Again, I'm asking you...you are about to get stabbed..please tell me what you want the cop to do? If you are the girl against the car please tell me what you would've wanted to happen?

[Jilly_in_VA]

66. I am saying

You have seen ONE clip from ONE cop's bodycam. And you seem to be claiming that the girl had a BIG knife, which it wasn't. The cop got out of his car with gun drawn, yelled "Stand down!" and immediately commenced firing. He didn't even give her a chance to "stand down". Seems to me his intention was to shoot, whether he killed her or not.

[caber09]

72. FFS you would've let him stab the other girl wtf is wrong with you

You would've allowed the girl to be stabbed and most
likely killed..are you telling us right now that if you were about to be stabbed you would want the officer to yell stand down more than once within a few seconds? You would be dead, seriously wtf is wrong with you, willing to sacrifice the other girl for your utopian view of the situation.."oh my if he only asked her more politely several times (in a matter of seconds while the knife was being wielded) to drop the knife she would be alive" gtfoh

[MarineCombatEngineer]

129. ....

[Calista241]

30. That clip appears to be pretty definitive.

Now if they find out he knew her and had a beef with her, then my mind can be changed. But he saved that girl in pink’s life.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

33. ...

You probably tried to justify the killing of Adam Toledo too.

This is uncalled for and you should apologize and delete.

[Jilly_in_VA]

67. No.

[caber09]

69. You should apologize for being ill informed in this case and wrong..

And also for being ok with the girl in pink being stabbed and probably killed..I'll ask again if you were pinned against a car and about to get killed what would you want the officer to do? You bailed out when I asked this last night..I'll be very interested in hearing how you'd want to get stabbed so the officer could negotiate, warn, tase or tackle your attacker from 20 feet away with the blade headed toward your neck

[Chakaconcarne]

85. I'm curious about that answer as well....

Lots of people here seem to think they know perfectly well what it's like to be a cop and making these split second decisions.

It's pretty f'in annoying if you ask me.

Let's see.... I will discern whether the person is about to stab your leg or throat before I decided whether I will shoot to stop it. Hopefully I have a good enough angle/viewpoint and aren't otherwise distracted.

We've seen a lot of horrible shit, but not all cops are bad.... and I'm pretty sure there is some foreign influence driving this narrative.

Each one of these incidents should be considered independent of the previous and with all the information and context. Pretty sure we don't quite have that yet.

[caber09]

86. +1000

[Journeyman]

21. Peyton Ham. 16. Dead. . . .

The trooper, whose name was not immediately released, was responding to two 911 emergency calls about "a guy acting suspicious" and possibly armed with a gun in a residential neighborhood. He arrived to find the teen in a home's driveway "in a shooting stance, pointing a gun at the trooper," Jones said.

"The trooper fired at the male, wounding him," Jones said.

The teen, who was identified as Peyton Ham, 16, and who lived a few houses away, then pulled a knife, Jones said.

"The trooper ordered him to drop the knife before he fired again," Jones said.

The teen was rushed to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead, he said.

Investigators later determined the teen was carrying an airsoft gun, a toy that is a close copy of an actual weapon and used to shoot BBs, which Jones described as "a replica gun that represented a real weapon."

https://www.usnews.com/news/top-news/articles/2021-04-14/teen-shot-dead-after-aiming-toy-gun-at-maryland-state-police-trooper

[caber09]

24. +1

Yep the suspect was warned, continued, was shot, pulled a knife and shot again...and Ham was white..he didn't listen and refused to drop "the gun" and then pulled a knife despite more warnings...what do some of you guys want to happen, what would you do in the troopers shoes...again chauvin got what he deserved and should rot in prison but this not the Bryant case is the George Floyd case or many of the other unjustified killings that are all too commonplace

[Watchfoxheadexplodes]

3. Never mentioned she was armed

[AZLD4Candidate]

32. In my post about police, you started splitting hairs

In this post, you are callous and don't care that a CHILD was killed. I pity you.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

35. And you don't seem to care that this child was a split second away from

stabbing the girl in pink in the neck, which would have likely resulted in her death.

[AZLD4Candidate]

36. So you shoot a child. Gotcha! I'll remember that in my classroom.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

37. Like I care.

And yes. I would shoot someone who is a split second away from stabbing someone in the neck.
Clear enough for you?

[AZLD4Candidate]

39. Okay there, Cowboy

Good guy with a gun! NRA talking points. Thanks for playing.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

40. Ooooh, how original,

NRA talking points.

[AZLD4Candidate]

41. I think I am done with you. I refuse to get into with someone who thinks they are John Wayne

and life is a Die Hard movie.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

42. Again, how original,

John Wayne?
Die Hard?

[pnwmom]

61. That child was much larger than the girl in pink, and was poised with a knife to stab her.

At that distance, a taser, which is much slower than a bullet, might not have been able to get to the girl with the knife in time to stop her from killing the other girl.

[cinematicdiversions]

70. A 200 pound child committing murder. NT

[Evolve Dammit]

11. A paring knife is not a gun. Did not need to end this way. Cops used to intervene and disarm/ defuse

[caber09]

17. So if you were in that situation you want the cop not to save you? That's very odd

[Evolve Dammit]

73. They are plenty of ways lethal use of force could have been avoided.

[caber09]

77. Not in this situation. In the time it took to type this..the girl would be stabbed at that point

[Warpy]

20. A paring knife can be lethal if you know where to hit

but using a nightstick instead of a gun might have been preferable.

Cops are trained to shoot first when there is a weapon being used against someone else. Had this guy been trained to stop and assess the situation first, he might have realized these were two kids and waded in with the nightstick instead of his gun. However, it was a high stress situation with very little time to reflect. Wading in with the nightstick would have put him at risk of injury.

Any time a kid's life ends in violence, it's tragic and everybody will second guess the situation. I would imagine that cop is doing a lot of that today.

[caber09]

22. +1

Let's also not forget the girl against the car was ok and not hurt thankfully

[AZLD4Candidate]

34. My hands can be lethal too, so anyone with hands on a police call has potentially lethal weapons

I am imaging the cop doesn't care at all.

How about that taser? Or trying to de-escalate the situation. No, just pull out the firearm and bang, bang, bang.

Child killing is excusable if a cop does it. Remember that Tamir Rice has a toy gun. Killing pets and children. . .cops seem to do alot of that.

[Warpy]

45. That's what they're trained to do if there is a weapon present

This is clearly wrong. They need to be taught to stop, breathe and assess the situation.

I suggested the nightstick because that can get a knife dropped very quickly.

These were kids. Just a 2 second pause to take a look would have told him that. His training was against it.

He did just what he'd been trained to do, drop the threat and secure the situation. It was just wrong.

[AZLD4Candidate]

47. Taser could work too, but we have a society where everyone wants to John Wayne or John McClane

The problem is those are two make believe characters.

[hack89]

68. There wasn't 2 seconds available to take a look

Her arm was in motion and that knife was going to be in that girl’s neck in a fraction of a second. Two seconds would simply give her time to stab that girl multiple times.

[cinematicdiversions]

71. A 2 second pause would have resulted in the murder of an innocent black girl protecting a puppy. NT

[Warpy]

89. She might have gotten cut

but I doubt kids that age know where to hit to seal the deal with a paring knife.

This was not a deadly force situation. Cop training got in the way of his seeing that.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

91. A knife stab in the neck is usually fatal,

especially if the carotid artery is hit, you would bleed out in seconds.

[Warpy]

94. Kids that age think they're solid, like potatoes

and I sincerely doubt it would have been a straight jab to one of the carotids.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

95. Would you be willing to take the risk that the carotid artery won't be severed or nicked?

I know I wouldn't.

Suppose it went through her windpipe? She would've drowned in her own blood.

[Warpy]

96. Going in with gun blasting was 100% sure to kill a kid.

Your point?

[MarineCombatEngineer]

97. I made my point,

a knife stab to the throat is usually fatal.

That was my point.

[caber09]

99. Knock it off, he saved the other girls life...enough of this "oh the cut wouldve been ok bs"

This is ridiculous...oh the girl in pink wouldve have just a little cut if they tased her, or negotiated with her, or stood and watched...NOT ONE person has said what they wouldve have wanted the cop to have done HAD THEY been the girl pinned against the car...THAT speaks volumes. Stop making this something that...as of now...is nothing other than an officer doing his job and protecting someone

[MarineCombatEngineer]

100. +100.

The sheer ignorance of the damage a knife can do, even in the hands of a teenager is astounding here.
As an MP, we were trained to never physically engage someone with a knife, it's an excellent way to get injured or killed, we were trained to drop them.
I'm just glad that I never had to engage anyone with a knife in my 2 years as an MP.

[LongtimeAZDem]

153. To downplay this weapon as a "paring knife" is dishonest in the extreme

[Warpy]

154. I'll bow to your superior eyesight

but it looks about the size of mine and was described that way by people at the scene.

I still think non lethal force would have done the trick.

Please understand I'm from a kinder and gentler time when the nightstick came out first unless opposing gunfire was a possibility.

Nixon changed that.

[LongtimeAZDem]

155. Like you, I come from a time before teenage girls having knife-fights in the street was a problem

[Warpy]

158. It happened rarely where I was

but it did happen.

[Evolve Dammit]

76. taser? pepper spray? tackle her and take the knife away? shoot in leg as very last resort? 15.

[caber09]

79. The girl in pink is DEAD with any of these choices, there were literally seconds to react, come on

[Evolve Dammit]

80. Glad you're not in uniform

[caber09]

84. No you arent, the girl would be dead, and you would look like a fool

[discntnt_irny_srcsm]

88. Many jurisdictions have laws regarding shooting to wound.

That can get you criminal charges. Same with warning shots. A firearm is a deadly weapon that can apply deadly force. If the use of deadly force is appropriate to save a life, then the safest action is to shoot for the center of mass. This is yields the greatest chance of a disabling hit. A hit also decreases the chance of others being hit. The center of mass on a human is generally 4 times larger of a target than a leg. Legs tend to move much faster than torsos. This reasoning is why professional training teaches to shoot for the center of mass.

I have seen 2 dimensional pictures and video from only 1 perspective. This doesn't provide me with any exact idea of the distances or proximity of others outside the frame.

The best options for personal security is a lifelong commitment to avoidance, deterrence, and de-escalation. Often, police become involved only when these courses of action are no longer available. Communities need resources for trouble and conflict which maybe could intervene before disagreements and conflict escalate to a police emergency.

[NH Ethylene]

27. It looks like he was too far away when it was about to happen.

I do wish there were other ways to stop someone from a distance besides shoot to kill.

[catrose]

31. What about those less-than-lethal options: rubber bullets, beanbags, and so on?

Those can cause damage, but not as much as 4 bullets.

[Evolve Dammit]

74. there are plenty of ways. Trained military kill.

[NH Ethylene]

75. Suggestions that would make practical sense?

Whatever it is, it would have to be ready to employ at an instant's notice, it would have to be doable from a distance, and it would have to be certain to incapacitate someone to stop an imminent attack.

[caber09]

78. Wait I thought we are supposed to be against militarized police? Given what we see, it was justified

[NH Ethylene]

14. This news conference shows the footage in real time and in slow motion.

[honest.abe]

81. If he had his taser in hand instead of his gun a better ending might have happened.

I would think a domestic dispute among children/young adults would be a situation for a taser not a gun. I think he violated protocol.

[NH Ethylene]

137. Does a taser shoot from that distance?

I thought you had to be pretty close to the person to shoot her with a taser.

[honest.abe]

138. 35 feet according to wikipedia

Their range extends from 15 feet (4.57 m) for non-Law Enforcement Tasers to 35 feet (10.67 m) for LE Tasers.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taser

[caber09]

139. Does it say how effective they are from 35 ft? we have seen close shots have no effect on people

[honest.abe]

140. Feel free to read it. I sent the link.

[Withywindle]

136. That video looks very heavily edited

And in the context of a police press conference.

I'm not saying it's not accurate or true necessarily. I'm saying that a police press conference is the LEAST reliable source possible when it comes to evaluating police conduct, because cops will ALWAYS* cover for each other. This is so well known, there is no more unreliable witness to a cop's conduct than another cop.


*Unless they're willing to get fired and possibly targeted for death threats. A few ex-cops have done so. They're the people we should be regarding as heroes.


I don't know if the cops are lying in this particular case. They might be, they might not be. When a Black person is shot more times than is necessary to subdue them, my default assumption is to assume the cops are lying until proven otherwise, because that is by far the common scenario.

I would need MUCH MORE hard solid evidence to disprove this pattern that my own eyes have seen over decades than to prove it.

They shot her in the chest 4 times. Surely once would have been enough, if their intention was to stop harm without killing?

[jcgoldie]

16. All that cop could do was...

...shoot her four fucking times in the chest. Totally fucking justified I've read it all over DU. Jesus christ.

[cinematicdiversions]

23. I hope the While House does not revisit this incident again.

Their heart was in the right place, but they need to be more impartial. This is as much a story of a hero cop whose quick thinking and skill saved the life of a young African American girl from a crazed knife wielding attacker.

Let's not politicize this instead take it on a case-by-case basis. This is not the hill to die on.

[caber09]

25. Agreed...do we know if WH saw the video before commenting?

[LisaL]

26. If they didn't, should they be commenting?

NT

[caber09]

28. No, they shouldn't but I'm not sure I was just asking, do we know?

[NH Ethylene]

29. I agree. Biden should not be commenting on each of these cases.

For one thing, it's unfair to those involved to be tipping the scales in that way. For another, he'd be doing it every week (at least!).

Just like lowering the flag to half-staff after every mass shooting. Might as well just never raise it again.

[NickB79]

38. Nope, not gonna fault the cop this time

The body cam footage is damning.

[AZLD4Candidate]

43. Something is wrong when people in a society have no issues and justify child killing

especially when someone with a badge does it. Tamir Rice had a toy gun. . .he needed to be executed too.

[NickB79]

44. I have a lot of issues with killing children

But I also have a lot of issues with letting children be killed.

Like the child that was almost stabbed to death by the other child with a knife.

Tamir Rice wasn't in the process of trying to murder another person when shot.

There were no good options here. Shooting the girl with the knife was unfortunately the less bad option.

[AZLD4Candidate]

46. So using a Taser wasn't an option? De-escalation? Secret Service put themselves between

an attacker and the president. No, it's just easier to murder children and have people justify it and explain it.

Same thing when police kill people's dogs.

[NickB79]

48. To start

We have no idea if the officer had a taser.

Tasers have a short range, and are notoriously inaccurate past 20 ft.

You never use a non-lethal weapon against lethal weapons. That's standard training, with pretty solid logic behind it.

De-escalation? The child against the car was literally a second away from having a knife plunged into her. You could barely get "STOP!" screamed out in that time, much less a conversation to deescalate The same goes for tackling or getting between them.

Again, the options were few, and none of them end well for everyone involved.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

50. What most don't realize is that

you can literally stab someone multiple times in less than 2 seconds.

[caber09]

52. +1 thank you for trying to talk sense into some of these posters..

And thank your for your service. Not one of the people blaming the cop have said what they would've like the cop to do if they themselves were the girl in pink and about to get stabbed. Instead they wax poetic about a taser, tackling the girl, talking to the girl...all in a matter of intense seconds..had any one of these particular posters arrived on the scene the girl in pink would be dead..this officer literally saved the other girls life.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

54. Thank you. nt

[honest.abe]

82. He did have a taser.

The yellow thing in his belt is a taser. If he had taser in hand when he got out of his car instead of his gun there might have been a better ending.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

49. You've never been a cop have you?

I spent 2 years in the Marine Security Forces and we were taught that

1. You don't use a Taser against someone about to commit attempted murder.

2. We were taught that a Taser is unreliable past 15 feet, they are highly inaccurate and at that range may not penetrate the skin.

3. Tasers don't always work against someone pumped up on adrenaline or drugs.


Methinks you've been watching too many cop shows.

[ripcord]

51. I don't see how de-escalation was possible at that range and with the knife already swinging

[AZLD4Candidate]

53. Non lethal shot. This is a child.

In a school, we have to take into account manifestations of issues, especially in an IEP.

Police can just shot and justify it.

[caber09]

55. You would've let the girl in pink die..that's on you

By the time you decided what to do the other girl would be dead..in a school you have to take into account...yep you just got the girl in pink killed...you are comparing saving a girl from being murdered to evaluating a student for their IEP...wow just wow

[MarineCombatEngineer]

56. Awesome isn't it.

Just in case this is needed.

[AZLD4Candidate]

57. I'm against children being killed. Period.

And if you aren't a teacher, evaluating an IEP? I've had student wig out and try to choke students in class due to psychotic breaks. Yes, that's a manifestation. And it needs to be taken into account when the issue has passed.

We don't take out guns and shoot children. Period. Could there have been another way?

I just got the girl in pink killed? I've had these issues in my classroom overseas. In China, I had a kid bring a knife into my classroom that he hid in his pants. While I turned to help another student, he whipped it out and tried to stab another classmate sitting less than three feet away, so far as to chase the kid around the room. Amazing how both kids are fine and no one was shot.

We allow too much justification for the killing of children. Child killing is WRONG. I can't believe this is even a topic of discussion in this country. It shows how much we have failed as a society.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

58. But you would have allowed the girl in pink to be knifed in the neck because

it's against your principles?

Fucking awesome!!!!!

It's very obvious that you know nothing about policing, yet you get on your high horse and condemn the cop for doing what he had to do in the split second he had to stop a possible murder.

[caber09]

59. You can't sayyou are against children getting killed bec you would've gotten the girl in pink killed

Your student in China was chasing the other student..so according to your story the knife wielding student never caught the intended target (thankfully) what would you have done if that student was 20 feet away and pinned down against the wall? You would have had a stabbed student. You are trying hard here but you are only digging a deeper hole for yourself and coming off more and more detached from the reality of the situation.

[pnwmom]

64. But on the video we saw that the girl with the knife had ALREADY succeeded

in stabbing another child. The cop had good reason to believe that she would stab the girl in pink -- and he only had a split second in which to decide how to act.

[pnwmom]

63. The person being threatened with the knife was a child, too. The person already stabbed

was a child.

The police was confronted by the site of a stabber who was a fraction of a second away from stabbing again.

In your classroom the stabber probably would have succeeded. That wouldn't have been your fault. But I don't think we should blame the officer for protecting the unarmed child.

I haven't seen any news report that a taser was even an option (many cops aren't provided with them). But they are slower and less accurate than guns.

[pfitz59]

135. Another issue, that "child"

is a full-grown woman. I see no "child"

[pnwmom]

62. The stabber had already stabbed another girl and was poised to stab again.

For all the cop knew, the girl in pink was the one who'd called for help. He was trying to protect her from the one armed with the knife -- and a bullet travels much faster than a taser.

[Beacool]

60. This is not the same as the George Floyd case.

It's easy to be a Monday morning quarterback, but I don't think that the officer had much choice. She was seconds away from stabbing the girl in the pink outfit. It's terrible that a 16 year old lost her life, but was the cop supposed to do in that case, let her stab the other girl? Either way it's tragic, a young life was cut short.

[kaotikross]

65. Yes, it's a shame..but

That "child" wasn't exactly 6 years old, she was grown and was attempting to stab somebody in the face with what looks to be a decent sized kitchen knife. The cop didn't know who was who, how old they were or anything else, all he knew was Person A was trying to stab Person B in either their face or neck with a knife. I'm the first person to call out a cop for shooting somebody unarmed, but as others have said- this isn't the hill to die on.
I know it's easy to lump this in with George Floyd, Mike Brown, Adam Toledo and so many other horrible cases where a cop killed an unarmed person but it isn't the same at all.
Reports say this child was in foster care and has previous anger issues. If anybody failed here it was the system, for not providing this kid with the kind of care she needed for what was obviously poor self control and violent tendencies. A 16 year old girl willing to stab somebody in the face needed more than foster care- she needed residential treatment so she didn't end up in prison for a violent act or on a slab in the morgue.

[honest.abe]

83. The officer had a good chance to taser the girl if he had his taser in hand instead of his gun.

See around 9:45 of this body cam video.

?t=587

[ripcord]

90. And if the mucscle spasms from the taser made the knife stab the other girl in the throat?

I suppose the cop can just apologize to the girl in pink's family and tell them the safety of the girl trying to murder her was more important.

[honest.abe]

92. And what if he missed shooting the girl with the knife and hit the girl in pink??

I guess he would have to apologize to her family as well and tell them he was just trying to save their girl and sometimes shit happens.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

93. But that didn't happen.

So the point is moot.

[ripcord]

102. I'm just amazed

So many people here would be willing to gamble the girl in pink's life on maybes.

[honest.abe]

105. Did you watch the entire video and see the part I was referring to??

There was a clear opportunity for the officer to taser the girl had he had a taser in hand rather than the gun.

[caber09]

107. +1000 Amazing how some people think...the girl in pink would be dead if they were in charge..

Also NONE with this opinion have answered my questions...what would they want the officer to do if they were the girl in pink and pinned against the car with a knife aimed at you from close range...I would love for them to admit theyd take one for the team so the knife wielder could not be stopped with force at that point

[honest.abe]

103. And the scenario I was responding to didnt happen either.

So that point is moot as well... according to your logic.

[caber09]

98. Nope, what ACTUALLY happened is he saved her life, so knock it off

[honest.abe]

104. And killed another girl in the process.

Not something to simply ignore.

[caber09]

106. Again HE SAVED the girl from getting stabbed...dont wield the knife then, the cop said stand down..

Enough of this BS "the cut wouldve been ok" "he couldve tased her from that distance" again would you rather the girl in pink die, or the knife wielder get stopped...its either/or...its not "oh if he only stopped and asked her to drop it nicely"

I am going to ask this to you, will you be the first to answer, bec none with your opinion have answered this direct question..
If YOU are the girl in pink...pinned against the car, what would you want the officer to do? ANSWER QUESTION, or go away

[honest.abe]

108. I completely agree the girl in pink is relieved and thankful for what the officer did...

however, the question is -- what is necessary to kill the other girl in the process? I think one can argue there could have been a better scenario had the officer came out of the squad car with a taser rather than a gun.

This was a domestic dispute among children/teens with no guns involved. Immediately brandishing a gun seems excessive in my opinion.

[LisaL]

109. Knife is a deadly weapon.

NT

[caber09]

111. +1000 I do not understand the "what about the girl with the knife" obsession

She was trying to stab the girl in pink and had her against the car...at that point Bryant (who also did not listen to the stand down order/drop it warning) is a criminal...in those seconds it was either the victim or the knife wielder....some people are ok with taking the chance on saving the criminal because the girl in pink "wouldve been ok with several stab wounds to the neck", odd thinking.

[honest.abe]

113. Yes of course.. my point is why immediately draw a gun to teens fighting in their front yard.

Seems to me a taser or baton would be the correct police weapon in this scenario.

I dont think this officer did anything wrong or evil. He certainly saved the girl in pink from serious injury or perhaps death. I just think the approach should have been different given this was a domestic dispute among young teens.

[caber09]

110. What would the taser have done from that distance? No guarantee taser wouldve stopped girl w/knife

Any delay and the girl in pink gets it right in the neck at least once...Again what would you have wanted the officer to do had you been the girl in pink? Take chance on the Taser from that distance? Or definitely stop the knife from going into your neck?

[honest.abe]

112. I guess you didnt watch the video.

There was a clear opportunity at around 9:45 to taser the girl. She just tried to stab the other girl and the officer was very close with his gun pointed at her. He hesitated to shoot at that point because I suppose he felt using deadly force was too extreme but if he had a taser I think he would have been more likely to use it.

I dont know what the standard protocol is for a situation like this but I would think immediately pulling out a gun on some teens fighting in their front yard is not the best practice.

[caber09]

114. I'd be very surprised if drawing weapon was not the move with deadly weapon wielded in front of him

And Yes I watched the video...he exited the police car the girl came charging out at another girl, knocked her over...then went after the other girl...had he come out immediately with taser drawn people wouldve had a problem with that too...instead he had nothing drawn until the situation unfolded...AND Bryant DID NOT listed to stand down/drop it warning...so he reaches into holster and fires taser...no guarantee that wouldve stopped the girl in pink from getting stabbed

[honest.abe]

116. Here is a screen grab at around 9:44.

The girl with knife just tried to stab the girl on the ground and is now running towards the girl in pink. The officer is pointing his gun (see dark spot at top middle of the frame) at her and could have shot her at that point but he hesitated. If he had a taser maybe he would taken the shot and that would have immobilized her and nobody gets seriously hurt.

[caber09]

117. Maybe this Maybe that...he didnt have any weapon drawn to begin with...had he come out of the car

with the taser already drawn many wouldve complained about that...there is no guarantee that the taser wouldve stopped her once he used it...also she is running around crazed wielding a knife...are you grabbing your taser or gun to protect yourself and others...STILL cannot answer the question of what you wouldve wanted if you were the girl in pink pinned against the car with a knife coming at your neck/throat...again your hesitation wouldve gotten the other girl killed..your screen grab only shows that he had no weapon drawn yet...Bryant refused the order to drop it...she is wielding a deadly weapon..and you are mad that the cop did what he had to do to save the other girls life.

[honest.abe]

125. Why pull out a gun on teens fighting in their front yard??

I dont want to continue arguing with my fellow Dems on this but it just seems excessive in this situation.

[caber09]

132. He DID NOT have his gun drawn initially watch the video, jesus

[yagotme]

142. When confronting someone with a deadly weapon, who seems intent on using it,

you draw YOUR deadly weapon. This wasn't "teens having a fight". It was a one-sided knife fight, which means a felonious assault.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

118. I hear a lot of maybe's

here, but as an MP, we were trained to not physically engage someone with a knife, we were trained to drop them, engaging someone bent on destruction is an excellent way to get injured or killed and we were also taught that Tasers are not the end all be all, there's a good chance that someone amped up on adrenaline or drugs won't even be fazed by a Taser.

[caber09]

122. MCE on two different threads here at DU...

NOT ONE of the people with these opinions have answered my question about what THEY themselves wouldve wanted the cop to do if they were the girl in pink pinned up against the car with a knife coming at your neck/throat...."but did you see in slow down replay he had 2.2 seconds to tase her" "oh it wouldve just been a cut and both girls would still be alive after she was subdued"...its beyond amazing what people are saying here...I also stand by my believe that the same people calling for the taser wouldve complained had he immediately drawn the taser coming out of the car

[MarineCombatEngineer]

123. Most here don't realize just how Tasers have a limited use and range,

they have no idea at all.

I've noticed that about your inconvenient question, seems it's ok to condemn the cop, but they can't come up with a viable alternative that is feasible.

[caber09]

124. +1000

[honest.abe]

126. Drop them?? Even a child?

[MarineCombatEngineer]

127. This teenager was a split second away from shoving a rather large knife into

another girl's neck, which almost certainly would have ended her life, so, yes, to be perfectly honest, I would have dropped her to save the life of the other girl.

I am truly sorry that this girl ended up dead, but the bottom line is that you don't attempt to kill someone else in front of a cop.

[caber09]

133. Yes I wouldve dropped her too to save the life of the other girl..

My father (a US Army Vet) wouldve dropped her to save the life of the other girl too
Nobody close to me (all Dems) has a problem with what happened here..the girl was wielding a knife about to stick it into another girls neck

I am going to ask this AGAIN...what would you have liked the cop to do if you were the girl pinned on the car with a knife coming at your neck/throat area...can someone with your opinion please finally answer me or not?

[yagotme]

141. You have 12 seconds to guess the age of a person running around,

knocking people down, attempting to stab them. How accurate are you going to be? Betcha a dinner at a nice restaurant that the cop didn't know anybody's age until well after the incident. This person is at least 5 foot, slightly heavy set, moving quickly. "Child"? She stopped acting like a "child" when she started attacking others with a deadly weapon.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

143. +100. nt

[yagotme]

144. Semper Fi, BTW.

0121/0151/8531 '83-'90

[MarineCombatEngineer]

145. Back atcha devil dog.

"64-'99.

[LisaL]

119. Unlike you, cop didn't have the luxury of viewing it in slow motion.

NT

[MarineCombatEngineer]

120. +100. nt

[caber09]

121. +1000

[honest.abe]

128. Yeah, clearly the situation was difficult and things moving quickly and violently.

I dont fault the officer for what he did at that point. My main comment is that he should have had a taser in his hand not a gun.

Anyway I am done with this thread. Ciao.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

130. Have a great afternoon.

[caber09]

134. I still dont get it...had the officer come out with taser drawn, same people wouldve complained..

Saying rushing out of car with taser ready to go was escalating the situation...PS: Still NOT ONE of them has answered my question

[Jedi Guy]

150. The reality is that no matter what the cops do, they're wrong.

If he'd tried to use his Taser and it hadn't worked, resulting in the death of the young lady in pink, people would scream that he was wrong to try that instead of using lethal force. Ditto if he'd rushed in for an attempt to use his nightstick or to tackle Bryant and wrestle the knife away. For extra bullshit points, someone would have opined that if the young lady in pink had been white, then the officer would have tried harder to save her.

Cops are damned if they do and damned if they don't. The Monday morning quarterbacks (with the luxury of unlimited time to think and slow-motion video replays) will say they should have done X instead of Y. And the fact that not a single person has answered the question you posed isn't the least bit surprising to me.

Ultimately the only person responsible for Bryant's death is Bryant herself. Harsh? Yes, it is, but it's the truth. She played stupid games and won a stupid prize.

[LongtimeAZDem]

156. +1

[oasis]

151. To my understanding, the cops were informed, via radio, that a

person with a knife (deadly weapon) was at the scene they were en route to. With that in mind, it's hard to believe they would exit their vehicle with a non-lethal taser, putting them at a disadvantage.

[LongtimeAZDem]

157. The 911 calls described a desperate scene:

Woods said Wednesday that police had received a 911 call about the attempted stabbing that brought officer to the scene. Police had not established as of Wednesday who placed that call.

In that call at 4:32 p.m. Tuesday, screaming can be heard as the caller asks police to come and says someone is trying to stab them. The police dispatcher tries to get more information and there is screaming before the call is disconnected.

A second 911 call, placed around 4:48 p.m., resulted in the caller hanging up after seeing a police cruiser on the scene.

[Jose Garcia]

115. One thing that people should have learned from the last four years is

that it isn't always necessary to make a comment about everything.

[cinematicdiversions]

131. Ah the Brett Favre rule. NT

[yagotme]

146. And now, this:

https://www.nbc4i.com/news/makhia-bryant-shooting/woman-seen-almost-stabbed-in-columbus-police-shooting-video-now-gets-death-threats-i-team/

Pink suit girl is now receiving death threats. Guess she should have let the other girl stab her.

[TexasTowelie]

147. Yikes!

WTH is wrong with people now?

[yagotme]

148. Just read through these threads;

Seems like there is a lot of "WTH are you thinking?"

[Jedi Guy]

149. Well yeah, obviously.

If she'd simply stood there quietly and allowed Bryant to murder her, Bryant would never have gotten shot by a cop and would still be alive. Clearly this whole tragic event is her and the cop's fault, and Bryant is absolved of all responsibility.

[yagotme]

152. I understand where you're coming from.

If she would have been a good little girl, and just let herself be stabbed to death, and no one had called the cops, this would have just been a page 10 article in the local newspaper. After all, the non-cop killings in cities like Chicago never make the national news.

[EX500rider]

159. Childhood ends at age 12

At 16 you're an adolescent.. verging on adulthood