A 6-5″ woman who was fatally shot by a Fairfax County (Virginia) police officer is a former Georgetown women’s basketball player.
The incident occurred at an apartment complex in Reston, Va. on Sept. 16 when a doctor asked police to conduct a welfare check on a mental patient.
The Fairfax County, Virginia Police Department released footage of the officer-involved shooting incident on Monday, Oct. 14.
In the bodycam video, Asian American officer Peter Liu knocked on the apartment door. Without warning, a woman opened the door and slashed at Liu with a kitchen knife.
The woman, later identified as Sydney Wilson, refused repeated commands to drop the knife and back up.
Liu drew his service weapon and retreated down the hallway with Wilson in pursuit. She caught up to him and slashed him in the face and arm.
Wilson continued to pursue Liu down the hall before he opened fire, killing her.
Despite the video evidence, Black Lives Matter called for Liu to be fired for using deadly force. Antifa referred to the shooting as a “murder”.
Wilson’s friends and family Wilson are mourning her loss on X (formerly Twitter).
The official X account for Georgetown women’s basketball team tweeted:
Georgetown women's basketball mourns the tragic loss of Sydney Wilson (C'13). Forever a Hoya.#HoyaSaxa pic.twitter.com/vqwD8M6x4t
— Georgetown WBB (@GeorgetownWBB) September 20, 2024
Others accused certain groups of politicizing Wilson’s death so close to an election.
To all the vicious commenters, they are mourning her and acknowledging she died tragically, not making excuses for how her actions contributed to her death. ??
Do better. Be more humane.
— IvyWarriorEsq (@IvyMarine1908) October 15, 2024
She made a small mistake in an emotionally charged environment. She should be alive and the officer should have understood that a small stab wound isn’t something worth killing a Black woman over. Tragedy all around. Say her name!
— David Allan Code (@gribtogurrency) October 15, 2024
She was having a psychotic break . Its likely why the policeman was summoned . Something caused her to snap. When she opened the door the second time it was to commit suicide. It's a horrible tragedy for her and the poor cop that has to live with this the rest of his life.
— Stevarino1020 (@sabooky15) October 16, 2024
It's really sad, and those who knew her have every reason to mourn her loss. She died because some untreated mental illness or drugs or both led to her getting shot as she attempted to murder a person. This was tragic, but let's not pretend it's something else.
— Joseph Blake (@what_the_hammer) October 16, 2024
