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The Columbus police officer who shot and killed 16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant has been cleared of criminal wrongdoing, Ohio prosecutors said on Friday.
Ma’Khia was killed in April 2021 by officer Nicholas Reardon 
as she swung a knife at a young woman, seconds after pushing another woman to the ground. Bryant was Black. Reardon is white.
Police were responding to a 911 call from Ma’Khia’s foster home about a group of girls threatening to stab members of the household.
The killing led to a US justice department review of the police department in the Ohio capital.
Ma’Khia was shot four times. 
The coroner listed the cause of death as a homicide – a medical determination used in cases where someone has died at someone else’s hand but not a legal finding. It does not imply criminal intent.
The killing further heightened tensions over police shootings of Black people, and also cast a light on the Ohio foster system. Read more.
