Michigan woman fatally shot by officer near Juneteenth parade

It happened on the second day of Flint's three-day Juneteenth celebration during the Champions Parade.

A 19-year-old woman was fatally shot on Saturday by a police officer in Flint, Michigan after she allegedly fired first not far from the city’s parade for Juneteenth. 

“Preliminary investigation indicates the officer, who was working a traffic point for the Juneteenth Celebration Parade, was fired upon by the lone occupant of a vehicle who drove up to him at the traffic point,” Michigan State police said. “Upon taking fire, the officer returned fire, striking the suspect.”

A woman was shot Saturday by a police officer in Flint, Michigan after she allegedly fired first not far from the city’s parade for Juneteenth. (Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

State law enforcement authorities are investigating the shooting at the request of the Flint Police Department. 

local report notes that cellphone video taken of the incident confirms police officials’ description of the shooting. In the video, the officer says, “Let me see your hands, hands up,” with a handgun pointed at a stopped vehicle.

The shooting occurred on the second day of Flint’s three-day Juneteenth celebration during the Champions Parade, which featured local athletic standouts and community leaders. 

“We will honor our ancestors, highlight our heritage, celebrate our community all weekend and rejoice in our solidarity,” said April Cook-Hawkins, one of the organizers who helped coordinate the weekend festival, in a pre-event press release. “We are working together to make sure that this year’s celebration of Juneteenth is bigger and better than ever before in the City of Flint. Seeing so many brothers and sisters come together to create a variety of celebrations this year — the first year Juneteenth is an official Flint holiday — is especially meaningful.”

Just days prior, President Joe Biden signed into law the creation of Juneteenth as a federal holiday. “I’ve only been president for several months, but I think this will go down, for me, as one of the greatest honors I will have had as president,” he said.

Claressa Shields, who won gold medals in boxing at the 2021 and 2016 Olympics, served as grand marshal of the parade, which was rerouted. 

The woman who was shot and killed has not yet been identified by the police. Neither has the officer. No one else was injured. 

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