Closing Arguments in Controversial Ohio Police Shooting Trial

Wed Nov 19 2025 16:26:22 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

The murder trial of Blendon Township police officer Connor Grubb comes to a close as the jury prepares to deliberate on the fatal shooting of Ta'Kiya Young, a pregnant Black mother accused of shoplifting. Prosecution and defense present their final cases in a trial that has drawn national attention.

In Columbus, Ohio, closing arguments are set to take place in the trial of Connor Grubb, a police officer charged with murdering Ta'Kiya Young, a pregnant Black mother killed after allegedly shoplifting. Prosecutors argue Young posed no threat when she was shot, while the defense contends Grubb acted reasonably in response to Young's actions in her vehicle. As jurors prepare to deliberate, emotions run high among Young's family, who seek justice.

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Closing arguments in the murder trial of an Ohio officer charged in the shooting death of a pregnant Black mother killed in a supermarket parking lot after being accused of shoplifting are set for Wednesday.

Prosecutors have told jurors that 21-year-old Ta’Kiya Young wasn’t a threat to anyone at the time she was shot. Defense attorneys for Blendon Township police officer Connor Grubb have emphasized that Young’s vehicle carried deadly force when she accelerated it near the 31-year-old officer, rendering his use of force within the standard of being ‘objectively reasonable.’

Grubb is charged with murder, involuntary manslaughter and felonious assault in connection with Young’s death on Aug. 24, 2023. He faces up to life in prison. Franklin County Common Pleas Judge David Young, no relation to Ta’Kiya, dropped four of 10 counts against him Tuesday that related to the death of Young’s unborn daughter, agreeing with his attorneys that prosecutors failed to present proof that Grubb knew Young was pregnant when he shot her.

The prosecution and defense both rested Tuesday after a roughly two-week trial. Jurors were shown the bodycam footage of the shooting on the first day of testimony, including testimony from a use-of-force expert and accident reconstructionist.

They never heard from Grubb, whose side of the story was contained in a written statement read into the record by a special agent for the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation. Sean Walton, an attorney representing Young’s family, expressed his disappointment stating, “It is curious that he did not testify. But the video speaks for itself.”

In the body camera footage, Grubb stated he observed Young arguing with his fellow officer and positioned himself in front of her vehicle to provide backup to protect other individuals in the parking lot. He drew his gun after Young failed to comply with commands. Video shows Young rolling her car forward towards the officer, causing him to fire a single bullet through her windshield into her chest.

After the incident, both Young and her unborn daughter were pronounced dead at a hospital, leading to Grubb's subsequent placement on paid administrative leave.