The family of Ma’Khia Bryant, the teenager a policeman shot and killed Tuesday in Ohio, is reportedly considering taking legal action.
Bryant called police when two women came to her foster home in Columbus and began fighting with her, according to Deja Torrence, who is a cousin, Insider reported Friday.
“Torrence said her mother, Hazel Bryant, and Bryant’s biological mother, Paula, had spoken throughout the week, including Friday morning. They are talking with a lawyer and want to take legal action,” the outlet continued.
The cousin stated someone must be “held accountable” because “The family just doesn’t want this to be another senseless killing that goes under the rug and gets overlooked.”
However, Torrence did not say who family members want to take legal action against or detail a timeline for those plans, but claimed the foster system failed her cousin.
“There’s been some talk about the foster family in the past, of how she’s had issues with the foster family. So as a family, we’ve tried to kind of navigate that over the years,” Torrence commented.
“I haven’t been in contact with them, but I want people to know that we should be holding somebody accountable for the 16-year-old kid’s death,” she said.
The Columbus Division of Police released bodycam video showing the shooting of the teenager who appeared to be armed with a knife.
“The video appears to show the girl fighting with another girl as the officer opens fire,” Breitbart News reported Tuesday.
WARNING: GRAPHIC VIDEO
A neighbor of the teenager reportedly said video footage captured by his security camera made him believe the officer had no choice but to shoot.
“It was violent and all just happened so fast,” Donavon Brinson told reporters.
The police officer was later identified as Nicholas Reardon. He was removed from street duty as the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation looked into the shooting, the Insider article concluded.