MANSFIELD - Ma Khia Bryant s grandmother wants people to know about her.
Bryant, 16, was shot and killed Tuesday afternoon by a Columbus police officer. About 25 people gathered Saturday afternoon on the downtown square for a rally organized by the Mansfield Peace Coalition. My name for her (Ma Khia) was Beautiful, Debra Bryant Wilcox said. She was a timid child. It was hard for her to fight back. She got bullied a lot.
The video of Tuesday s incident shows officer Nicholas Reardon exiting his cruiser and approaching a group of people involved in an altercation.
As seen on the body-camera video, Ma Khia Bryant pushed or swung at a person who then fell to the ground.
It s one step closer to realizing that our lives do matter as well, Williams said. When I say Black Lives Matter, it s not to negate anyone else s life. In fact, it is in support of the statement that all lives matter.
After deliberating for about 10 hours over two days, the jury on Tuesday found Chauvin guilty of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter for the killing of George Floyd, who died last year on Memorial Day after Chauvin knelt on his neck for more than nine minutes. It s hard enough to watch someone who s lived a full life pass on, Williams continued. But when you see someone senselessly lose their life, that s much more difficult to deal with, I don t care what you look like.