Don Lemon Urges Caution in Coverage of Ma’Khia Bryant Police Shooting: ‘We Cannot Have a Double Standard’

Don Lemon opened CNN Tonight with a discussion of the shooting of Ma’Khia Bryant, saying “we need to be honest” and “acknowledge that police have jobs to do.”

“People are anguished watching another video like this. And I get it. But even in our anguish, we cannot abandon the responsibility we have to be fair. And even while our hearts are hurting, we have to judge each incident based on what we see and the facts we know,” Lemon said.

16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant was shot and killed by police Wednesday afternoon in Columbus, Ohio. The police were responding to a 911 call over an altercation. The bodycam footage released Tuesday night appears to show Bryant holding a knife while lunging at another girl.

Lemon said of the footage, “I see police responding to a dangerous incident, where someone is armed with a knife.”

He repeated his hesitation to jump to conclusions by urging caution. “If we’re going to discuss this case, we need to be honest and use our common sense. We cannot have a double standard. We have to acknowledge that police have jobs to do.”

However, he added, “With people dying every day, we’ve got to find a pathway to justice. A road map to take this country to where we need to be. To liberty and justice for all.”

You can watch above, via CNN.

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