When news spread of the police-involved shooting of Ma’Khia Bryant, many took to social media to react to the news. In a tweet that has since been deleted, LeBron James shared his desires to see Officer Nicholas Reardon be held accountable for his actions. The tweet — which read “YOU’RE NEXT #ACCOUNTABILITY” — garnered reactions from many, including O.J. Simpson.
On Thursday (April 22), the former football player shared his thoughts on James’ now-deleted post and was immediately criticized by Boosie for getting himself involved.
“You can’t fight every battle,” Simpson said in the clip posted on his Twitter account.
“Sometimes you need to take your time and be a little more patient before you comment on some of these bad incidents that are happening with some police departments.”
Bryant — who reportedly called 911 for help as she fought two older women from her foster home — was shot after Reardon arrived and saw her wielding a knife amid the physical altercation. Authorities later released footage of the incident, which Simpson believes justifies Reardon’s actions.
“What I saw when I saw the full thing, the police guy had no choice,” said Simpson. “We wish he could have pulled a taser, we wish he could have done it in another way, but in that instance, if he hadn’t done what he did, it appears to me that another young American would have had her life taken. I can’t fault what he did. I wish it were different, but I can’t fault it.”
Boosie later came to James’ defense, calling Simpson out for his failure to support the Black community during this time. “O.J. Simpson… How the hell you gonna tell LeBron [to] be quiet ‘bout speaking up our race, you supposed to be speaking up our race,” he said in his Instagram Story. “I was cheering for you! We got you free… The Black community got you free! And you want to tell them to chill out? You need to chill out. You better chill out. Get the fuck out Lebron nuts. You wrong man. You supposed to be on the front line for this Black shit.”
Boosie’s comments come after his own reaction to Bryant’s shooting, which had him “fucked up” the moment he learned the news.
“Man they [shot] this girl four times, a teenage daughter four times, in the muthafucking chest, bruh,” he said at the time. “Talking bout a knife? [Shot] this girl four times in the chest and [left] her to die. This shit got me fucked up this morning. I’m thinking bout my daughters, bro.
“Somebody shoot[s] my 15-year-old daughter, Imma kill all you bitches. I swear to God. One of you fucking police kill[s] my muthafucking child, Imma murk all you bitches!”
Look below to see the aforementioned posts from Simpson, James and Boosie.