RantCrush Top 5: June 20, 2017

On Sunday, Seattle police officers fatally shot a pregnant 30-year-old mother of four in her home. Charleena Lyles had previous encounters with law enforcement due to her mental health issues. Lyles reportedly survived physical and sexual abuse throughout her childhood. The father of her two youngest children was also violent and abusive, even after she obtained a restraining order. Lyles had sought mental health help in the months leading up to her death and had seen a therapist several times.

The police claim that Lyles was holding a knife when the officers arrived at her house at 10 a.m., which isn’t that strange given that she had reported a burglary and called 911. Both officers fired their guns instead of trying to disarm her. Lyles was black and both officers are white. Her children were in the home when she was killed.

#CharleenaLyles, the woman shot and killed by Seattle police on Sunday, was pregnant https://t.co/bFDTXjvjVq pic.twitter.com/qH7Gp4uAOD

— Paige Cornwell (@pgcornwell) June 19, 2017

Now people are outraged that a woman who called the cops for help was killed for no apparent reason.

New audio from @SeattlePD: officers yelled “get back”, called for help before shooting mother armed w/a knife Sunday. Clip now @komonews.com pic.twitter.com/8dh8CEYwOi

— lee stoll (@LeeStoll) June 19, 2017

Emma Von Zeipel

Emma Von Zeipel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. She is originally from one of the islands of Stockholm, Sweden. After working for Democratic Voice of Burma in Thailand, she ended up in New York City. She has a BA in journalism from Stockholm University and is passionate about human rights, good books, horses, and European chocolate. Contact Emma at EVonZeipel@LawStreetMedia.com.