Black Ohio mom, Ta’Kiya Young, 21, ‘shot and killed by cops after stealing alcohol from the supermarket’

A pregnant black woman was shot dead by police after she allegedly stole liquor from a store and drove her car into an officer.

Ta’Kiya Young, 21, of Columbus, Ohio, and her unborn daughter died in the altercation Thursday night in Blendon. She was six months pregnant.

An employee at a Kroger grocery store told officers — who were at the store on an unrelated case — that several people were fleeing with stolen items, Blendon Police Chief John Belford said.

That included mother-of-two, Young, who allegedly took several bottles of alcohol from the Kroger store.

One officer went to the driver’s side of the mom-to-be’s car and told her to pull over, Belford said, while the other officer moved in front of her four-door sedan.

Blendon Police Commissioner John Belford said the mother-of-two Young took several bottles of alcohol from the Kroger store

The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation is leading the investigation into the fatal shooting

More than 20 family and friends gathered Friday night at Young’s grandmother’s house in memory of the young mother and her unborn child

Young then put the car in gear and accelerated forward and the officer directly in the path of the vehicle fired one shot through the windshield, the police chief claims.

The pregnant woman’s car then drove about 15 meters before coming to a stop on the sidewalk in front of the supermarket.

Her car was locked, so the officers broke the driver’s window to get Young out of the vehicle. She was transported to Mount Carmel St. Ann Hospital.

A short time later she was pronounced dead. Young was due to give birth in November, her family told The Columbus Dispatch.

Her unborn daughter did not survive the shooting. Young was the mother of two sons, ages 6 and 3.

The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation is leading the investigation into the fatal shooting.

The names of the two officers and further information about them – including their age and race – have not been released.

Young was pronounced dead a short time after being shot by police. Young was due to give birth to her third child in November

Friends comfort each other during a private candlelight vigil on Friday, August 25

The family of 21-year-old Ta’Kiya Young sit outside their home, including her grandmother, Nadine Young, 61, right, and her two boys, Ja’Kobie Young, 6, left, and Ja’Kenli Young, 3

An employee at a Kroger grocery store told officers who were at the store on an unrelated matter that several people were fleeing with stolen items, Blendon Police Chief John Belford said.

They are on paid administrative leave while the shooting is investigated, which is standard procedure in such incidents, Belford said.

The shooting was captured on police bodycam video and officers said it will be released later this week.

Young’s family told The Columbus Dispatch they have many questions about the shooting, especially why she was considered a deadly threat.

“She stole something from the store,” her grandmother, Nadine Young, told the newspaper.

“You didn’t have to shoot the woman; she would eventually have gotten out of the… car. You didn’t have to kill her and the baby.’

An image of the scene after the mother was shot by police officers in the parking lot

More than 20 family and friends gathered Friday night at Young’s grandmother’s home in memory of the young mother and her unborn child.

Her grandmother said Young had “a knack” for bringing family together and the police shooting spurred them into action.

She said, ‘We will all gather around (her sons) and be the village for them.

“Take care of them, get them to school, keep them focused and make sure they don’t hate the police. I don’t want them to grow up like this.’

In his statement Friday, Belford said body camera images will be available but will take time to process.