Students at Ohio State University gathered in a common area on Wednesday to demand that the school cut ties with the Columbus Police Department after the fatal shooting of a teenage girl in black.
Images posted on social media show students packed into the Ohio Union, which houses student services, dining areas, a bank and other university offices. Some people gave speeches, but there were no reports of vandalism or riotous behavior.
In a statement to Fox News, a university spokesman said the school ‘supports the right of our students, faculty and staff to express their views peacefully and to express their views on matters that are important to them. our values as an institution of higher education. ‘
The crowd eventually left the area and pulled down into a street. The school said the university contracts with the CPD for specific services, mostly traffic control for sporting events. The school’s police department also has a mutual assistance agreement with authorities to assist the off-campus police division.
The rally comes amid the murder of Ma’Khia Bryant, a 16-year-old girl who was killed Tuesday by Columbus police officer Nicholas Reardon. He has been running since December 2019 and has been placed on administrative leave pending an investigation.
In an unprecedented move, authorities released the footage from three police officers within 24 hours of the shooting incident.
The clips show a girl hitting another female on the ground and then another weapon as she picks up the apparent knife. At that point, she was shot several times. The incident came just before the conviction in the Derek Chauvin trial in Minneapolis.
A 911 caller said someone was “trying to stab us” before the fatal shooting. Amid rumors in the background, the caller said: “[indistinguishable]… trying to fight us, trying to stab us, trying to get their grandmother in their hands. Come here now. ‘
Police did not publicly identify the caller.
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Bryant’s mother, Paula Bryant, said her daughter called 911 because people threatened her.
Demonstrations erupted Tuesday night in Columbus, where the other deadly police shootings this year and late last year took place. Former officer Adam Coy killed Andre Hill, 47, in December when he came out of a garage with a cellphone. Coy has been discharged from the police force and is charged with murder and other offenses. He pleaded not guilty.
On March 5, police officer John Kifer and deputy Mike Severance shot dead Andrew Teague, who was wanted on a malicious assault charge and allegedly aimed a firearm at officers after a chase and accident. The incident is being investigated by state authorities.