Ohio State University students gathered in a common room on Wednesday to demand that the school cut ties with the Columbus Division of Police after the fatal shooting of a black teenage girl.
Images posted on social media show students packed in the Ohio Union, where student facilities, eateries, a bank, and other college offices are located. Some people made speeches, but there were no reports of vandalism or unruly behavior.
In a statement to Fox News, a university spokesperson said the school “supports the right of our students, faculty and staff to peacefully express their views and speak up on issues that are important to them. commitment is central to our values as an institution of higher education. “
The crowd eventually left the area and marched down a street. The university is contracted with the CPD for specific services, mainly traffic control for sporting events, the school said. The school police also has a mutual assistance agreement with the authorities to assist the police off campus.
The meeting takes place amid the murder of Ma’Khia Bryant, a 16-year-old girl murdered by Columbus Police Officer Nicholas Reardon on Tuesday. He has been employed since December 2019 and was placed on administrative leave pending an investigation.
In an unprecedented move, authorities released camera images of police bodies from three officers within 24 hours of the shooting.
The clips show a girl knocking another female to the ground and then flying towards another while raising the apparent knife. At that point, she was shot several times. The incident came just before the guilty verdict in the Derek Chauvin trial in Minneapolis.
An emergency number caller said someone “tried to stab us” for the deadly shooting. Amid a commotion in the background, the caller said “[indistinguishable]… try to fight us, try to stab us, try to put their hands on our grandmother. Come here now. ”
Police have not publicly identified the caller.
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Bryant’s mother, Paula Bryant, said her daughter called the emergency number because people threatened her.
On Tuesday evening, demonstrations broke out in Columbus, where other deadly police shootings took place this year and late last year. Former officer Adam Coy killed 47-year-old Andre Hill in December when he came out of a garage with a cell phone. Coy has been fired by the police and is charged with murder and other crimes. He pleaded not guilty.
On March 5, Police Officer John Kifer and Deputy Mike Severance shot and killed Andrew Teague, who was wanted for a crime and allegedly aimed a gun at officers after a chase and a crash. The incident is being investigated by government agencies.