Mischa Barton upsets fans by posting bikini shot alongside cop killer rant

Actress Mischa Barton has been blasted for posting a shot of herself posing on a yacht while paying tribute to a man killed by a police officer in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

The former The O.C. star took to social media on Thursday (07Jul16), to offer up her thoughts about the death of Alton Sterling, who was fatally shot on Tuesday (05Jul16), but her post was met with major criticism, thanks to the photo she chose to add to her comments.

She wrote: "I'm truly heart broken to watch videos like the #altonsterling execution. This may have been going on forever in the United States but thank god the pigs get caught on camera now.

"Its (sic) unthinkable and an embarrassment to America. The country I was brought up in. Somebody make change. We need gun control and unity. And a real President so think about that when this election is around the corner. The world is a precarious place right now."

Unfortunately, Mischa's Instagram tribute featured an accompanying photo of the actress sipping wine on a yacht vacation.

Followers quickly turned on her, with one writing: "This isn't about you. Change the pic if you want people to take your expressed sentiment seriously.

Another offered: "Talking about someone's death while shamelessly posting a picture of yourself in a bikini is disgusting."

Barton has since removed the post and the photo.

Sterling, 37, was shot by police on Tuesday (05Jul16), at a convenience store where he was selling homemade CDs and DVDs.

According to The Washington Post, Sterling is the 122nd black person who has been shot and killed by the police in 2016. On Wednesday (06Jul16), another black man, Philando Castile, was fatally shot by a police officer in Falcon Heights, Minnesota.

Barton isn't the only celebrity to comment on the deaths - Drake, Amy Schumer, Zendaya, and Jesse Williams have also offered their thoughts, and Michael Jackson's son Prince Michael took to Twitter to speak out against the incidents.

"We are now living in a world where it's dangerous to go to public gatherings because of terrorist attacks and we cannot feel safe because the one group of people who are tasked (and payed) for our protection are shooting our brothers and sisters," the 19-year-old wrote. "That's not to say all cops are brutal racists, that's not the case, but there are a significant few who have ruined the lives of many.

"It's time to stand up, for your safety, your family's safety, your loved ones' safety and even your neighbors' safety."