Ohio police officer acquitted of murder after shooting pregnant mother accused of shoplifting

An Ohio police officer was acquitted of all charges, including murder, by a jury on Friday after shooting a pregnant mother accused of shoplifting.

If Blendon Township police officer Connor Grubb was convicted, he could have faced up to life in prison for the 2023 shooting death of 21-year-old Ta'Kiya Young, CBS News reported.

Body camera footage showed Grubb shooting Young on Aug. 24, 2023, while she drove her vehicle in his direction after she allegedly stole liquor from a Kroger grocery store, according to ABC News.

Young was seven months pregnant at the time of the shooting, and her unborn child also died.

Franklin County Common Pleas Judge David Young dismissed two counts of felony assault and two counts of felony murder of Young's unborn child on Tuesday at the defense's request.

In a statement read by the prosecution during the trial, Grubb said that he pointed his gun at Young after she failed to comply with his partner's commands to get out of the vehicle. He said he felt the car hit his legs and start to lift his body off the ground.

According to a federal lawsuit filed against the police chief, Grubb allegedly was not trained or supervised properly and "recklessly escalated" his response to the situation.