Ohio activists seek DOJ probe 1 year after police shot Jayland Walker 46 times
In April, a grand jury decided not to indict the eight officers involved in the deadly shooting.
WASHINGTON — Roughly 100 people traveled from Akron, Ohio, to Washington D.C., by bus Monday night and held a rally on the steps of the Department of Justice, marking the one-year anniversary of the death of Jayland Walker, a 25-year-old Black man who was shot at more than 90 times by police.
“We are here today to demand that the eight officers that killed and brutally murdered Jayland Walker be terminated immediately today,” the Rev. Raymond Greene, executive director of the Freedom Bloc, an Akron-based political advocacy group, said at the rally Tuesday. “We’re here today to demand that our chief resigns or be terminated today. We want a response within the next two weeks or we will continue to escalate.”
Over a dozen organizations gathered to demand that the Justice Department open an investigation into the policies and practices of the Akron Police Department.
“It’s the magnitude, that is why we are still marching … the magnitude of how many officers shot at one human being is the reason why we still are having these conversations,” Judi Hill, president of the Akron branch of the NAACP, told Yahoo News.
National leaders have also urged the DOJ to investigate the Akron Police Department. According to a press release dated April 24, Democratic Ohio Rep. Emilia Sykes sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland calling for an investigation.
“The call for this investigation is in no way an attempt at retribution, but rather, an opportunity to implement more community-focused policing that serves the needs of every segment of this community,” Sykes said. “The gravity of recent events has shown it is past time for an independent third party to facilitate discussion to help mediate disputes and place the community on a path to reconciliation and healing — a path that has been charted by the DOJ in numerous communities across the country.”
The fatal shooting
The shooting occurred on June 27, 2022, after police pulled Walker over for a minor traffic violation. According to the Akron Police Department, officers heard the sound of a gunshot from Walker’s vehicle. He then ran from the car as it was still moving, prompting a foot chase, and eight officers fired 94 bullets, striking Walker, who was unarmed, 46 times.
“The officers did not know at the time Mr. Walker had left his recently purchased gun in his car,” Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said at a press conference in April, adding that the initial gunshot from Walker’s vehicle could be considered as a “deadly threat,” which gives officers the right to use deadly force to defend themselves.
In April, following a lengthy investigation, a grand jury decided not to indict the eight officers involved in the shooting. At the April presser, Yost said the jurors issued a “no bill” decision and felt that the officers’ use of force was justified.
“Legal justification does not change the terrible, permanent damage of Jayland Walker's death,” Yost said. “I grieve the loss of this promising young life, although I recognize that no words of mine can offer much comfort to his family.”
But Tamika Mallory, a lawyer and civil rights activist, said the Akron Police Department’s story does not make sense. “There were 90-plus shots fired at one man who was not shooting back,” Mallory said during the rally on Tuesday. “It never added up. Nothing ever came together. It was never clear. … It always was a story that did not make sense.”
‘Enough is enough’
Civil rights organizations and Walker’s family are seeking accountability from the city. “We have filed a lawsuit against the city of Akron for $45 million for each bullet that struck Jayland,” Paige White, the Walker family’s attorney, said Tuesday. “We’re not asking for anything that this family doesn’t deserve.”
During the rally, White asked the audience to take a 45-second moment of silence to honor Walker and his life. Walker had 46 bullet holes in multiple areas of his body, including his head, legs, arms, knees and torso, according to the autopsy report released in June 2022.
Last year, when the bodycam footage of the brutal shooting was released, protesters gathered in the streets of Ohio to demand justice.
“We were angry, but disciplined. We were outraged, but disciplined. We did not tear up our communities, but we voiced our outrage at every opportunity,” Bruce Butcher, a longtime Akron resident, told Yahoo News.
Butcher was among many Akron residents who traveled by bus to stand alongside the Walker family, and he says the community has to fight back. “If they can do it to Jayland Walker, they can do it to me, they can do it to my brother, to my son, to my sister. So, in effect, I'm drawing a line in the sand to say enough is enough,” Butcher said.
Following Walker’s death, the community voted to create a police oversight board during the November 2022 election. The ballot measure passed by a large margin, with 62% of voters approving it. Most of the members are appointed by the City Council.
“The Jayland Walker incident birthed our board, the police in Akron have never had it,” Donzella Anuszkiewicz, one of the nine members on the board, told Yahoo News.
Anuszkiewicz says her community was heavily affected by Walker’s death. “I believe that a community trauma took place because of it, from everyone involved. And it was a tragedy,” she said.
