Members of the Akron Police Department have been cleared of administrative accountability in the fatal shooting of Jayland Walker following an internal probe. The findings come after the same group was cleared of any criminal charges in the shooting.
In June 2022, eight officers from the department chased down Walker on foot as he ran from them, firing over 90 shots at him as he fled, per CNN’s report. The department claimed Walker shot at the police while they pursued him in a brief car chase moments prior. However, Walker was unarmed at the time of the shooting. He suffered 46 gunshot wounds, according to his autopsy.
The incident led the nation to question what could justify firing that many bullets. According to the findings from an internal investigation, the officers acted within policy and didn’t abuse deadly force because Walker was considered “an armed and violent suspect.”
Read more from Chief Stephen Mylett’s memo:
As Mr. Walker exited the vehicle, he was wearing a ski mask, on a warm June night, further causing the officers to fear a more severe crime. He was given multiple commands to show his hands. Mr. Walker while fleeing on foot, refusing multiple commands to show his hands, turned towards officers, reached to his waistband and raised his arm in a shooting posture. This caused officers to believe he was still armed and intended on firing upon officers. Officers then fired to protect themselves and their fellow officers.
While certainly tragic, after having reviewed the BCI investigation and Lt. Lieke’s investigation, and the City’s policy, similar to the Special Grand Jury, I find that that the use of deadly force was objectively reasonable and the officers complied with the use of force policy. As I already stated, this was a very dynamic, dangerous and fluid event and all officers were focused on safely apprehending the fleeing suspect and when presented with a reasonably perceived life-threatening danger, acted to protect themselves and their fellow officers.
Typically, we see internal probes happening at the same time as, or even before, state investigations. However, this internal investigation came after a grand jury declined to indict the officers involved on state charges in April, the report says. It’s safe to assume the chance of the officers facing department charges was low from that point forward.
Though the cops are back to work and business as usual, the Akron Police Department and city still face a $45 million lawsuit filed by Walker’s family accusing the officers of excessive force.