LeBron James on Wednesday tweeted and then deleted a picture of Officer Nicholas Reardon, the Ohio cop who shot Ma’Khia Bryant as she swung a knife at another woman.
“YOU’RE NEXT,” the 36-year-old Los Angeles Lakers star tweeted to his millions of followers, along with a picture of Reardon. “#ACCOUNTABILITY.” He has since deleted it. The screenshot can be seen below. (RELATED: LeBron James Says He Doesn’t ‘Condone Violence Towards Anyone, Police, Black People, White People’)
LeBron James Deleted Tweet (Photo: Twitter/Screenshot/Public-User: LeBron James)
“This is HOURS after the verdict!!!” he added in another post. “Do not stop. We cannot let up. Not for one second. #votersuppressionisracsim #ACCOUNTABILITY.” (RELATED: Bodycam Footage Reveals ‘Unarmed’ Victim Of Police Shooting Was Actually Attacking Woman With A Knife)
This is HOURS after the verdict!!! Do not stop. We cannot let up. Not for one second. #votersuppressionisracsim #ACCOUNTABILITY https://t.co/I3ayQrSimp
— LeBron James (@KingJames) April 21, 2021
Several hours later, the Laker’s star explained he deleted the original post because it was “being used to create more hate.”
“I’m so damn tired of seeing Black people killed by police,” James tweeted. “I took the tweet down because its being used to create more hate -This isn’t about one officer. It’s about the entire system and they always use our words to create more racism. I am so desperate for more ACCOUNTABILITY.”
I’m so damn tired of seeing Black people killed by police. I took the tweet down because its being used to create more hate -This isn’t about one officer. it’s about the entire system and they always use our words to create more racism. I am so desperate for more ACCOUNTABILITY
— LeBron James (@KingJames) April 21, 2021
The post came about after reports surfaced naming Reardon as the officer who was involved in the fatal shooting of 16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant in Columbus, Ohio, CNN reported.
It’s not just the headline: even though the knife is clearly visible in her hand, the article never says it.https://t.co/9sRleqLYwJ pic.twitter.com/f27FSu6a4Z
— Jeryl Bier (@JerylBier) April 21, 2021
In a series of clips, Bryant is seen as holding a knife during an altercation with another young woman. The girl was then shot by officers when the girl appeared to attempt to stab a second woman.