A teenage girl was shot and killed by police in Columbus, Ohio, on Tuesday afternoon, officials said, shortly before a jury reached a guilty verdict in the murder trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin in the murder of George Floyd last year.
The girl’s death immediately put a damper on public statements that justice had been served in Mr. Floyd’s case and sparked protests in the Ohio capital.
The Columbus Division of Police did not immediately provide details of the shooting, which was confirmed on Twitter by the city’s mayor Andrew Ginther, who said there was police CCTV footage of the confrontation and urged residents to keep the peace while protesters arrived on the scene.
“This afternoon a young woman tragically lost her life,” said Mr. Ginther. “We don’t know all the details. There are camera images of the incident worn on the body. We are working to review it as soon as possible. “
The Columbus Dispatch reported that police had responded to a 911 call about an attempted stabbing when the shooting took place around 4:45 PM in the southeastern part of Columbus. The verdict in the Chauvin case was announced about 20 minutes later.
Mr. Ginther said the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation would conduct an independent investigation, which he says is standard when an officer shoots someone.
“We will share information that we can as soon as it becomes available,” he said. “I ask residents to remain calm and allow BCI to gather the facts.”
A woman interviewed by The Dispatch identified the victim, who was black, as her 15-year-old niece. The woman, Hazel Bryant, told the newspaper that her niece was living in foster care and was arguing with someone else in the house.
Ms. Bryant said her niece had a knife, but claimed the girl dropped the knife before being shot several times by a police officer, the newspaper reported.
Columbus police did not immediately respond to reports asking for comment on Tuesday evening. A crowd of protesters gathered outside the city’s police building, local news media reported.
The teen’s death quickly gained a lot of attention, including from Ben Crump, the Floyd family’s lawyer, amid an ongoing balancing of police responsibility and systemic racism.
“As we breathe a collective sigh of relief today, a community in Columbus felt the sting of another police firing @Politie_Rdam Killed an unarmed black girl of 15 years old, ”said Mr. Crump. ‘Another child lost! Another hashtag. “
Jack Begg contributed research.