COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The Ohio police officer who shot and killed Ta’Kiya Young, a pregnant Black mother who had been accused of shoplifting, was acquitted on all counts Friday, including murder.
Blendon Township police officer Connor Grubb, who faced up to life in prison, appeared stalwart as he heard the verdict. Young’s grandmother, Nadine Young, collapsed into sobs at the decision, shouting “It’s not right! This is not right!”
Sean Walton, an attorney for the Young family, called the outcome “an American tragedy,” lamenting what he said is a dual system of justice in the U.S. The family’s legal team vowed to continue its fight in civil court, where her estate sued the township and police chief over department practices in August.
The officer had pleaded not guilty to murder, involuntary manslaughter and felonious assault in the death of 21-year-old Ta’Kiya Young. Bodycam recordings showed Young refusing to exit her parked car outside the supermarket, and then turning her steering wheel to the right before the vehicle began slowly rolling forward against the body of Grubb, who fired one shot into her chest through the windshield.
Franklin County Common Pleas Judge David Young, no relation to Ta’Kiya, dropped four of 10 counts relating to the death of Young’s unborn daughter, agreeing with defense attorneys that prosecutors failed to present proof that Grubb knew Young was pregnant when he shot her.
