By Patrick Aftoora Orsagos and John Seewer
Related Press
COLUMBUS, Ohio — An Ohio police officer was charged Tuesday with murder and other counts in connection with the shooting of Ta’Kiya Younga 21-year-old woman who was killed last August after being accused of shoplifting.
Kennewick Police Chief Chris Guerrero said the program is consistent with the police department’s mission to provide “professional policing services with integrity, courage and commitment.”
“When I was a young girl … I never imagined my world would be outside the Bronx, and with these girls – I feel like I recognize myself in them,” said Commissioner Tania Kinsella
“Wrong is wrong. There is nothing to investigate,” said Jonesboro Police Chief Rick Elliott, who immediately fired the officer and turned the case over to prosecutors.
Ferguson police officer Travis Brown remains in critical condition at a St. Louis-area hospital three days after he was attacked by a protester outside the police station
Young was suspected of stealing bottles of alcohol when Blendon Township Police Officer Connor Grubb and a colleague approached her car. The other officer ordered her to get out. Instead, she continued to drive toward Grubb, who fired a single bullet through her windshield into her chest.
A Franklin County grand jury indicted Grubb on charges of murder, manslaughter and aggravated assault in connection with the deaths of Young and her baby. He is scheduled to go to trial Wednesday. A warrant has been issued for his arrest as part of the indictment.
Brian Steel, vice president of the Blendon Township police union, called the charges deeply disappointing. “Like all police officers, Officer Grubb had to make a split-second decision, a reality all too familiar to those who protect our communities,” he said in a statement.
In bodycam video of the Aug. 24 shooting, an officer at the driver’s side window tells Young she is accused of shoplifting and tells her to get out of the car. Young protests, both officers curse at her and yell at her to get out, and Young can be heard asking her, “Are you going to shoot me?”
Seconds later, she turns the steering wheel to the right, the car slowly rolls forward, and Grubb fires his gun. Moments later, after the car comes to a stop in front of the building, they smash the driver’s side window. Police said they tried to save her life, but she was fatally injured.
Sean Walton, the family’s attorney, said the law is clear about when an officer can use deadly force.
“In no case does anyone who commits shoplifting contribute to their being killed by a police officer,” he said. “They bear no responsibility.”
The Blendon Township Police Department’s use of force policy states that officers should attempt to move away from an approaching vehicle rather than firing their weapons. An officer should only shoot if he or she “reasonably believes that no other reasonable means are available to avert the immediate threat posed by the vehicle or if deadly force not posed by the vehicle is being directed at the officer or other persons.”
The state Bureau of Criminal Investigation completed its investigation into the shooting last December before assigning a special prosecutor to oversee the case. The prosecutor then presented evidence to the grand jury within two days. Grand juries do not consider whether the defendant is guilty, but whether there is enough evidence to proceed with a trial.
Blendon Township Police Chief John Belford said police opened a disciplinary investigation after Grubb was charged. Grubb has been a full-time township officer since 2019 and has been on leave since the shooting. Records show he was not licensed to practice as an officer anywhere else in Ohio.
“No one in Blendon Township has made a judgment as to whether Officer Grubb acted within the law,” the police chief said in a statement. “However, since the individuals charged may not possess a firearm, the charges against him leave us with no choice but to pursue disciplinary action.”
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Seewer reported from Toledo. Associated Press researcher Rhonda Shafner in New York contributed to this report.
