According to News Reports, Charleena Lyles Was Shot Seven Times by Police after Reporting an Alleged Burglary
Research Shows Black Women Are Three Times as Likely to Be Shot and Killed with a Gun as White Women
SEATTLE – The Washington chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, part of Everytown for Gun Safety, today released the following statement regarding news about the autopsy of Charleena Lyles. According to published reports, 30-year-old Lyles was shot seven times and killed in her apartment by two Seattle Police Department officers. Lyles, who was three months pregnant at the time, had called police to her apartment to report an alleged burglary. In a statement, the department said Lyles “confronted” the officers with a knife.
STATEMENT FROM LAURA LATTA, VOLUNTEER CHAPTER LEADER WITH THE WASHINGTON CHAPTER OF MOMS DEMAND ACTION FOR GUN SENSE IN AMERICA:
“My heart is broken once again for the family, friends and children of Charleena Lyles, who was one of the more than 90 Americans killed by gun violence every day. We cannot talk about gun violence without acknowledging that it hits the black community particularly hard: Research shows black women are three times as likely to be shot and killed with a gun as white women. We should all be able to feel safe in our homes and daily lives, and law enforcement must be part of the solution to these tragedies.”