LeBron James is explaining why he deleted a tweet that referenced 16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant, who was shot and killed by a police officer on Tuesday, April 20.
As reported by NBC News, a Columbus Police Department officer’s body-worn camera recorded him responding to a 911 call in Columbus, Ohio on April 20. The video, released Tuesday night, shows the officer yelling at Bryant to “get down” before firing multiple shots.
According to police, Bryant had allegedly threatened two girls with a knife.
On April 21, James posted a photo of the officer with the caption, “YOU’RE NEXT [hourglass emoji] #ACCOUNTABILITY,” according to media reports by ESPN and other outlets.
After deleting his tweet, the Ohio-born athlete posted two follow-up tweets addressing the situation.
In the first response tweet, James wrote, “ANGER does any of us any good and that includes myself! Gathering all the facts and educating does though! My anger still is here for what happened that lil girl. My sympathy for her family and may justice prevail!”