Grand jury doesn’t indict Columbus police officer who fatally shot Ma’Khia Bryant

A Franklin County grand jury has declined to indict the Columbus police officer in the fatal shooting of Ma’Khia Bryant last year.

The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation had led an independent probe into the deadly incident.

Bryant was shot on April 20, 2021 by Columbus police officer Nicholas Reardon as she swung a knife at a young woman in the driveway of a home on Legion Lane. Bryant was shot four times and died from those injuries.

Bryant, who was Black, was killed Reardon, who is white, seconds after he arrived on the scene of a disturbance call at a southeast Columbus foster home where Bryant lived. Reardon shot Bryant as she lunged at a woman with a knife.

Some of Bryant’s neighbors and activists have said Reardon fired too quickly after arriving on the scene, while others have said Reardon was forced to act quickly.

The Ohio Attorney General’s Office has published the investigative files online.

Franklin County prosecutor Gary Tyack didn’t handle the case because of a potential conflict of interest. Bryant was living in a foster home at the time, and Tyack’s office is legal counsel for Franklin County Child Services.