A special grand jury in Ohio declined to indict the Akron police officers who shot a 25-year-old Black man dozens of times, killing him, after a car chase and foot chase last year.
The grand jury concluded the officers were legally justified in their use of force against Jayland Walker, according to Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost.
The incident took place just after midnight on June 27, 2022, when police initiated a traffic stop of a 2005 Buick vehicle with a broken license plate light, according to authorities. The driver of the vehicle, later identified as Walker, drove away from officers and fired a gunshot from his vehicle during the car chase, according to police.
Walker then exited the vehicle wearing a ski mask and led police on a foot chase, ignoring commands to stop and show his hands, Yost said. Officers attempted to use non-lethal Tasers to pursue him, Yost said. Walker then made a motion that officers interpreted as threatening, leading to the shooting, Yost said.
“He reached for his waistband in what several officers described as a cross-draw motion, planted his foot and turned toward the officers while raising his hand,” Yost said. “Only then did the officers fire, believing Mr. Walker was firing again at them.”
“The law allows officers to use deadly force to defend themselves or others against a deadly threat,” he added.
Walker was unarmed at the time he was killed, according to police. A gun was found in his vehicle after the shooting and the ballistics of a shot recovered nearby matched the weapon, Yost said.
A week after the shooting, police released a narrated video timeline of the shooting featuring parts of body camera videos from 13 officers at the scene, as well as still images taken from traffic cameras.
Eight police officers fired a total of 94 shots at Walker within 6.7 seconds, according to the investigation. Three of the officers fired 18 times each.
Walker suffered 46 gunshot entrance wounds or graze injuries, according to an autopsy by Summit County Medical Examiner Dr. Lisa Kohler. Even so, Walker was handcuffed after the shooting.
DiCello said Monday he was disappointed in the grand jury’s decision, and that the family will file a civil suit. “We’re going to be filing it before the one year anniversary of his death,” he said.
Walker had no criminal record and worked as a delivery driver for DoorDash and Uber Eats.
