In Jarrett’s tweet about the incident she claims that the officer shot Bryant “immediately,” when in reality he gave the young woman quite a few attempts to drop her weapon before he fired, which you can see in the body cam footage.
Here’s Jarret’s tweet:
A Black teenage girl named Ma’Khia Bryant was killed because a police officer immediately decided to shoot her multiple times in order to break up a knife fight. Demand accountability. Fight for justice. #BlackLivesMatter.
— Valerie Jarrett (@ValerieJarrett) April 21, 2021
Here’s the bodycam footage of the incident:
Columbus, Ohio Police have released the Bodycam footage of the officer involved shooting. The suspect posed an imminent threat to another female as she attempted to stab her. pic.twitter.com/jFsftD1Jhr
— National Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) (@GLFOP) April 21, 2021
Of course, Jarrett was absolutely lambasted for this tweet:
“She was trying to stab a girl to death with a steak knife you ridiculous lying phony”
“That officer likely saved a life. Anyone pretending they don’t see what was about to happen 👇 are doing so in the name of a political agenda, and should be ashamed of themselves.”
“You are a terrible person. Stop.”
“It’s amazing that this is a real tweet from a real person.”
“What about the life if the girls she was actively trying to stab? What should the officer have done?”
“Maybe the fact that you think a knife fight isn’t a big deal is part of the problem.”
“Did you see the video? She was about to stab another teenager. Please don’t speak until you’ve seen the video. I like you, but your statement is wrong.”
“Let’s think this through. What should he have done instead? The reason police or anyone trained with a weapon shoots for the body mass is twofold. It stops the perpetrator, it protects innocent bystanders, who may be hit by stray rounds if you aim for a smaller part of the body.”