COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) 鈥� The Columbus police officer last year has been cleared of any criminal wrongdoing, Ohio prosecutors announced Friday.
Bryant was killed in April by Columbus police officer Nicholas Reardon as she swung a knife at a young woman, just seconds after pushing another woman to the ground. Bryant was Black and Reardon is white. Police were made from Bryant's foster home about a group of girls threatening to stab members of the household.
The killing led to a Justice Department review of the police department in Ohio鈥檚 capital city.
Bryant and died from her injuries. The coroner listed the cause of death as a homicide 鈥� a medical determination used in cases where someone has died at someone else鈥檚 hand, but not a legal finding. It doesn鈥檛 imply criminal intent.
Bryant鈥檚 killing further heightened tensions in Ohio's capital city , and also cast a light on the state鈥檚 foster care system.
In announcing the grand jury decision, special prosecutors Tim Merkle and Gary Shroyer noted, 鈥淯nder Ohio law the use of deadly force by a police officer is justified when there exists an immediate or imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury to the officer or another.鈥� They said the decision followed a full review of the shooting.
The woman Bryant was attacking, Shai-onta Craig, had formerly lived at the home but had returned and argued with her that day, according to Craig's statement to police released Friday.
Reardon told investigators he didn鈥檛 think using mace or a 鈥渉ands-on鈥� approach would have worked because of the knife in Bryant鈥檚 hand, because he thought he was the only officer on scene and because Bryant appeared much bigger than him.
鈥淎t the time I fired my weapon, I was in fear for the life of the female in pink,鈥� Reardon said, referring to Craig.
The city will now conduct an internal review to determine whether Reardon's actions followed department policy, the Columbus Public Safety Department tweeted.
Bryant's family expressed disappointment that Reardon wasn't charged and said in a statement: 鈥淭here should have been other non-deadly options available to deal with this situation.鈥� Her family also called for 鈥渇ull-scale changes" to Ohio's foster-care system to prevent similar tragedies.
鈥淥hio鈥檚 foster care system is failing our children and we cannot stand by and allow this to continue,鈥� the statement said. 鈥淎s the one-year anniversary of Ma鈥橩hia鈥檚 death approaches, her family is resolute in their fight for justice on her behalf."
Foster parent Angela Moore told investigators that neither Bryant nor her sister, who was also in the home, had ever displayed violence, but all the girls in the home periodically argued.
A week after Bryant鈥檚 death, Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther invited the Justice Department to review the police department for possible 鈥渄eficiencies and racial disparities.鈥�
The U.S. Justice Department accepted, and last fall , saying its Office of Community Oriented Policing Services would conduct a review of what the department called technical assistance in such areas as training, recruitment including a focus on diversity and creating an early intervention system for officers.
Columbus 鈥� the country鈥檚 14th largest city 鈥� has recorded several contested police shootings, including the in an emergency room; and the 2020 . The white police officer who fatally shot Hill has pleaded not guilty to a number of charges brought against him by the state attorney general鈥檚 office.
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Associated Press writers John Seewer in Toledo and Mark Gillispie in Cleveland contributed to this report.
Andrew Welsh-huggins, The Associated Press
