Anchorage police fatally shoot 16-year-old girl in Alaska

Anchorage, Alaska - Law enforcement shot and killed a 16-year-old girl in Anchorage on Tuesday in the latest fatal police shooting in the Alaska city.

Easter Leafa was preparing to start her junior year of high school this week when she was fatally shot by police in Anchorage, Alaska.
Easter Leafa was preparing to start her junior year of high school this week when she was fatally shot by police in Anchorage, Alaska.  © Screenshot/X/@gochu_gyaru

Easter Leafa was just days away from beginning her junior year of high school when she was shot and killed by police.

Officers said they had responded to a call around 11:30 PM on Tuesday when a girl reported her sister had threatened her with a knife.

Anchorage Police Chief Sean Case said two officers opened fire after Leafa approached them with the blade.

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"They asked her to put the knife down once. Once she made one movement, a little tiny movement, they shot her three times," Leafa's sister, Rosalie Tialavea, told Alaska's News Source.

"We all started crying and tried to run towards her," she added.

The teen had moved from American Samoa to Alaska in the last half year in hopes of a better life, according to the TV station.

As of Wednesday, Leafa's family reportedly still had not heard which hospital she was taken to after the shooting.

Case said there was body cam footage of the killing and there would be a follow-up press conference on Monday at 1:00 PM local time.

Leafa was the sixth person to be shot and fourth to be killed by Anchorage police in the last three months.

Cover photo: Screenshot/X/@gochu_gyaru

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