Photo: Edwards Funeral Service Obituary
An Ohio mother is seeking justice after murder charges were inexplicably dropped against a white suspect in the fatal shooting of her 13-year-old Black son just a week after his killing.
Suspected shooter Krieg A. Butler initially faced murder charges for the October 12 shooting death of Sinzae Reed, 13, in Columbus Ohio. However, on October 19, a week after Reed's death, Franklin County prosecutors filed to dismiss the case in Municipal Court, per Newsone.
“There has been a claim of self-defense,” Columbus police homicide Det. Keith O’Connor said at the time the charges were dropped.
Now, Reed's mother, Megan Reed, is speaking out as legal officials have yet to release any information on how Butler’s self-defense claim was deemed credible enough for him to walk free. A motive behind the killing, too, remains unknown.
“It has been almost three months, and I haven’t spoken to anybody about this investigation,” the mother told the North Carolina Beat in a recent interview. “I haven’t even spoken to the detective. They are all on his side, Kreig is a white man, and the detective is a white man too.”
According to Megan, her 13-year-old son's fatal shooting occurred after the two talked in the kitchen of their home. Following the conversation, the mom thought that Sinzae had returned to his room, but a neighbor banged on her door, informing her that her son had been shot.
“I didn’t even know he had went outside,” Megan said. “Until the knock at my door telling me he had been shot.”
When she arrived at the scene of the shooting, Megan found her son lying on the ground with gunshot wounds, and witnesses said Butler was responsible.
“Soon as I got over there, everybody was like, ‘Kreig did this, Kreig did this,’” Megan said.
According to court records obtained by The Dispatch, one witness told police that they saw Butler exit a red truck, shoot the teenager multiple times, get back in his vehicle, and drive off. Butler was arrested at his home the next day, Megan said.
An October statement from Prosecuting Attorney Gary Tyack’s office said the killing was still under investigation and that it was normal for this kind of case to not make it to a grand jury.
“Not every case initiated in Municipal Court is presented to the Grand Jury,” the press release said, per the Dispatch. “This particular case is still under review for possible presentation to the Grand Jury, and unfortunately, I cannot advise you when the case will be presented to the Grand Jury.”
Sinzae's sister, Makayla Nichols, told The Dispatch on Thursday (December 29): “A grown man killed a child and nobody cares. We want to know why he's free."
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