Complete coverage of the Jayland Walker police shooting in Akron, Ohio

A special grand jury was seated in April to review evidence in the fatal Akron police shooting death of Jayland Walker last year. That grand jury ruled the officers were justified.

Walker, 25, was fatally shot more than 40 times by eight Akron police officers on June 27, 2022, after a car and foot chase for an equipment violation. He was unarmed during the shooting, but police said he fired a shot from his vehicle less than a minute into the chase. A handgun was found in his vehicle.

Walker's death has led to multiple protests and arrests since as demonstrators demand justice and accountability for the eight officers involved in his death.

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Here's a look at major headlines from previous coverage of the shooting and its aftermath.

Akron police fatally shoot suspect who officers say fired on them during chase — June 27, 2022

One person was shot dead by Akron police in the early morning on June 27 following a car chase that started in the city's North Hill neighborhood and ended in Firestone Park. Read the full story.

'Everybody loses,' Akron chief says of police shootings; family says 'That's not Jayland.' — June 29, 2022

Akron police officers tried to pull over an Akron man for traffic and equipment violations early Monday morning, but he refused to stop and then fired at officers, according to Chief Stephen Mylett.

Family members, meanwhile, are grieving and currently unable to speak about Walker, said Robert DeJournett, pastor at St. Ashworth Temple church in Akron's Sherbondy Hill neighborhood. DeJournett said Walker is his cousin's son.

"That's not him at all. That's not Jayland," DeJournett said about the details that have been released of the shooting. "Jayland was a wonderful, wonderful young man. ... I guarantee, who Jayland is is going to come out." Read the full story.

'We don’t treat animals that way.' Jayland Walker's family demands police accountability — June 30, 2022

The grief-stricken family of Jayland Walker, who died June 27 after police say he fled a traffic stop, has called for peace, understanding and justice in the latest officer-involved shooting.

An attorney said the family is demanding accountability for the multiple officers who reportedly shot Walker dozens of times following a 4½-minute car chase from Akron’s North Hill neighborhood to Firestone Park. Police allege that a gun was fired from Walker’s vehicle but have yet to explain whether he was armed when he was shot in the arms, legs, abdomen and face by multiple officers then handcuffed on the ground of a parking lot until the medical examiner arrived to pronounce him dead. Read the full story.

Akron police release 'heartbreaking' bodycam videos of officers killing Jayland Walker — July 3, 2022

Akron Police Chief Steve Mylett said it appears that Jayland Walker reached toward his waist during a foot chase with police and briefly turned toward officers before they opened fire Monday morning.

During a press conference, Mylett spoke in detail for the first time since the fatal shooting of the 25-year-old after he fled what started as a routine traffic stop. Read the full story.

Akron police union believes officers were 'justified' in shooting Jayland Walker — July 3, 2022

The union representing Akron's police officers believes the actions of eight officers who shot and killed Jayland Walker were justified.

The Akron's chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police issued a statement after Akron officials released video of the chase and shooting. Read the full story.

Gruesome videos, Jayland Walker's motions intensify debate; attorney disputes city's claims — July 3, 2022

Jayland Walker was unarmed, wearing a ski mask and running from his car when bullets instantly dropped him in a parking lot at Wilbeth Avenue and Main Street.

In the next six seconds while laying on the asphalt, Walker’s body twitched and rolled as eight Akron police officers fired 90 or more rounds that hit the 25-year-old Black man 60 or more times, according to a preliminary coroner’s investigation that has yet to match all the bullets and holes. Tasers also were deployed, according to police.

These grisly and critical details were confirmed in the city’s partial release of body-worn camera footage during a press conference at the Firestone Park Community Center, located less than a half-mile from the fatal June 27 shooting. Read the full story.

Here's what Akron police were saying and hearing before shooting Jayland Walker — July 3, 2022

Along with body-camera videos, the Akron Police Department released a transcript of the radio traffic during a car chase and subsequent killing of Jayland Walker in the early morning hours of June 27. Read the transcript in its entirety.

Jayland Walker bodycam footage: Policing experts say shooting video raises more questions — July 4, 2022

As Akron police released body-camera footage Sunday of the fatal shooting of Black motorist Jayland Walker showing multiple police officers discharging a hail of bullets, policing experts say the video produces more questions than answers early on. Read the full story.

Who was Jayland Walker? 'He was the most sincere, most kindhearted person,' friend says — July 4, 2022

Jayland Walker was a quiet, peaceful, funny guy, said his friends and former assistant principal and wrestling coach at Buchtel high school.

Robert Hubbard was Walker's wrestling coach for four years and knew him since he was a young wrestler on an area youth team.

“He wasn’t what they were describing on those news stories ... no, that’s not the kid I know,” Hubbard said.

“I’ve been the coach at Buchtel since 2002. He’s one of the sweetest, most mannerable kids I’ve ever had," Hubbard said. "If you gave me a list of 100 kids that this would have happened to, he would have been 99th or 100th for me to guess.

"What they are describing is so out of character, which is why I understand why the family is asking for answers because that’s not Jayland Walker." Read the full story.

Seven seconds of shooting: What 13 police bodycam videos show in Jayland Walker's death — July 4, 2022

When Akron police officers first fired their guns at 25-year-old Jayland Walker early in the morning of June 27, he dropped to the ground within the first second.

Officers continued to fire for six more seconds, according to body-worn camera footage released by the Akron Police Department. Read the full story.

Exclusive: What body-worn police video shows from July 6 protests over Jayland Walker shooting

'Jayland should still be here': Former Akron police officer talks about his cousin's death — July 7, 2022

Delone Carter sits at the intersection of Jayland Walker's family, policing and Akron's past and future.

The Akron native, who is Walker's cousin and a former Akron police officer, posted a 10½-minute YouTube video about his cousin. In the video, he also discussed his own experience as an Akron police officer and as a "Black man in America" who wants to change how African American communities are policed. Read the full story.

‘We must not normalize this’: Family, pastors remember life of Jayland Walker — July 13, 2022

After Jayland Walker graduated from Buchtel High School, his family asked him about his plans for the future.

Walker, who had wrestled all his life, said he was thinking about going semi-pro, much to the thrill of his young cousins.

What would his wrestling name be? His family offered suggestions.

“Nah,” he told them. “I’m gonna be String Bean.”

“With Jayland, you didn’t always know if he was joking or not, so we kind of laughed it off,” Walker's cousin Robin Elerick said, chuckling as she shared this memory during Walker’s funeral service at the Akron Civic Theatre in downtown Akron.

Elerick was among several family members and clergy who spoke during the funeral for Walker, who was shot and killed by Akron police officers June 27 after a brief chase. They provided the first insight from the family of the 25-year-old man whose name has become a national rallying cry for police reform. Read the full story.

'We must reclaim Jayland.' Walker funeral mixes memories, outrage and calls to action — July 13, 2022

In many ways, the funeral for Jayland Walker is a typical homecoming celebration, with quick-tempoed music and hundreds of people rising to their feet, clapping and shouting words of affirmation.

But there’s also an undercurrent of frustration and anger filling the Akron Civic Theatre.

“We should not be here today and Jayland should not be in this box,” Bishop Timothy Clarke from the First Church of God in Columbus tells the crowd, pointing to the white flowers piled high on Walker’s shiny black casket before him. Read the full story.

Jayland Walker had 46 entrance wounds and died from 'devastating injuries,' examiner says — July 15, 2022

Jayland Walker had 46 entrance gunshot wounds or graze injuries on his body, according to an autopsy.

In a press conference Friday morning, Summit County Medical Examiner Lisa Kohler said there were more than 46 entrance wounds or graze injuries. Kohler also said there were 15 additional exit wounds. Read the full story.

'Fear is a real thing,' for Blacks when having to deal with the police officers — July 18, 2022

Invariably with every officer-involved shooting involving a Black male that ends in tragedy, divisions and questions arise.

No question looms larger over most of these incidents than “Why didn’t he just comply?”

The answer proves complicated, but Kemp Boyd, executive director of Love Akron and head coach of the Garfield Rams football team, believes fear played a role in what transpired with Walker. Read the full story.

FOP says officers who shot Jayland Walker 'weren’t chasing him just because of an equipment violation' — July 19, 2022

The leader of Akron's police union said Monday that officers encountered Jayland Walker's car twice on the night he was shot and killed by police.

"They weren’t chasing him just because of an equipment violation,” Akron FOP President Clay Cozart told News 5 Cleveland. Read the full story.

Here's what new records tell us about 8 Akron officers who fatally shot Jayland Walker — July 20, 2022

Personnel files confirm the eight Akron police officers who shot at Jayland Walker were never disciplined or faced substantiated complaints prior to the June 27 chase and fatal shooting.

Support our journalism: Why local journalists matter for covering the Jayland Walker case from beginning to end

One, identified by the city as Officer 2, previously fired a gun at a suspect after a shooting downtown but missed, according to records released July 28.

The same officer also has been the subject of eight citizen complaints, ranging from racial bias and a lack of courtesy to wrongful arrest and excessive force. The city determined that each of the complaints was unfounded or unsubstantiated, records show. Read the full story.

Could Cincinnati offer Akron a road map forward after Jayland Walker's death? — July 22, 2022

Timothy Thomas was shot and killed by Cincinnati police in 2001 when Jayland Walker was 4 years old in Akron.

Thomas was the 15th Black man or child killed by police in that Southwest Ohio city between 1995 and 2001.

No one knew it then, but his death and the riots that followed would forever change Cincinnati and how police there do their jobs.

Now, 21 years later, could Walker — who died last month in a barrage of police gunfire — do the same for Akron? Read the full story.

Police rarely face charges when they kill in the line of duty. What are the standards? — July 29, 2022

Extrajudicial judgment of the officers who killed Jayland Walker on June 27 came quickly.

The eight officers who struck Walker 46 times, according to a later-released medical examiner’s report, acted in a way that’s “consistent with use of force protocols and officers’ training,” the Akron police union said July 3, just minutes after the city released body-worn camera footage of the incident.

Protesters in the streets of Akron, meanwhile, labeled the police shooting a murder, with a barrage of bullets they called excessive.

At the end of a legal process that could take a year or more, a grand jury or a judge will decide whether the officers' use of deadly force was justified or potentially broke the law. Read the full story.

Resignations, shortages and safety: Akron Police face challenges after officer-involved incidents — Aug. 25, 2022

Fearing for his family’s safety after the shooting death of Jayland Walker by Akron police this summer, a veteran Akron officer removed the blue lights and police flags from the front of his house.

He contracted with a web security service to safeguard his family’s personal information and requested that their information be wiped from the county's board of election and auditor websites.

On the job, there was no escaping the backlash. As he walked into the Akron police station, a man protesting the recent police shooting yelled, “F***, you pig!”

The 25-year officer decided he’d had enough. At his wife’s urging, he recently made the difficult choice to retire five years earlier than planned and work for his family’s business. Read the full story.

Jayland Walker case: Akron releases longer officer videos of shooting death, aftermath — Aug. 26, 2022

New longer footage from the eight officers who fired at Walker largely backs up what police have said happened in the immediate aftermath of the June 27 shooting.

Video from 13 officers released July 3 as required by a city ordinance were cut off when the shooting stopped. Read the full story.

Jayland Walker's family attorney criticizes police for turning off mics, cameras — Aug. 30, 2022

Jayland Walker's family is "sad, angered and offended" that new information about what happened continues to "trickle out" two months after eight Akron officers shot and killed the 25-year-old Akron man, an attorney for the family said to a row of television cameras in the back parking lot of St. Ashworth Temple on Vernon Odom Boulevard.

The videos, which the city initially declined to release to the Akron Beacon Journal, largely backed up what police said happened. Officers handcuffed Walker about a minute after the shooting and then began providing medical aid. Those who fired their weapons were rounded up and separated from each other after a few minutes.

Lawyer Bobby DiCello on Tuesday took issue with each of the eight officers in the footage either turning off their microphones or cameras soon after the shooting.

In the video, supervisors and colleagues tell officers who haven't already done so to turn off the cameras or "go blue" — a reference to a blue light that blinks on the Axon recording device when the camera is on but audio is not collected. Read the full story.

New Akron police videos show car windows down, gun inside Jayland Walker's vehicle — Sept. 9, 2022

Two dozen newly released police videos requested by the Akron Beacon Journal show how officers found Jayland Walker's car, idling against a church on the other side of Wilbeth Road seconds after he was fatally shot by officers.

Akron police have said Walker fired a single shot from the vehicle while leading multiple units on a crosstown car chase that began with an attempted stop for traffic and equipment violations and ended with officers fatally shooting him after a brief foot chase.

When officers found Walker's car, the Buick had rolled against the glass block window of the church at the southeast corner of Main Street. The bass of a song left playing after Walker bailed from the car and ran was still rattling the trunk. Read the full story.

8 Akron officers involved in shooting death of Jayland Walker return to desk duty — Oct. 11, 2022

The eight Akron police officers who are under investigation for their involvement in the June shooting death of Jayland Walker have returned to work in the office, the Akron Police Department said.

The officers, who have been on paid administrative leave since Walker's death June 27, are being reassigned to administrative duty due to staffing issues within the department after several officers have left, said Akron Police Chief Steve Mylett. Read the full story.

Akron community protests after 8 officers involved in Jayland Walker shooting return to work — Oct. 12, 2022

Protesters took to Highland Square on Wednesday evening, one day after the Akron Police Department announced that the eight Akron police officers who are under investigation for their involvement in the June shooting death of Jayland Walker have returned to work in the office.

The protest in Highland Square around 6:20 p.m. entered West Market Street and blocked all traffic for several minutes. The protesters then moved into the lot next to the Highland Square branch of the Akron-Summit County Public Library, chanting obscenities about police. Read the full story.

Akron police chief tells residents why he reinstated 8 officers in Jayland Walker shooting — Oct. 28, 2022

Akron Police Chief Steve Mylett's recent decision to reactivate eight police officers under investigation for the shooting death of Jayland Walker in June was a key part of the discussion at a Ward 5 meeting hosted by City Council member Tara Mosley.

Mylett had explained his decision to return the officers to duty as a response to a department staffing crisis, which he said forced him to do something to avoid having to cut services. Read the full story.

Beacon Journal asks Ohio Supreme Court to order release of Akron police records — Nov. 22, 2022

The Akron Beacon Journal asked the Ohio Supreme Court Monday to force the city of Akron and its police department to release complete personnel records for officers involved in three police shootings.

The newspaper filed a mandamus action asking the state's high court to intervene in a months-long dispute over whether Akron can redact officer names from personnel files, which are public records under Ohio law. Read the full story.

What we still don't know 6 months after Akron police killed Jayland Walker - Dec. 27, 2022

The Tuesday after Christmas marked six months since Akron police shot and killed Jayland Walker.

In a ski mask after allegedly firing a single shot during a cross-town car chase, Walker, 25, ditched his vehicle near Wilbeth Road and Main Street at 12:37 a.m. June 27. Unarmed, he ran into a parking lot, spun around and was struck 46 times by eight uniformed officers.

In the tumultuous months since, police have arrested more than 75 people at protests. The police chief reinstated the eight officers to desk duty. And a grand jury has yet to rule on the state's ongoing investigation into this third fatal use of force in a six-month time period in Akron. Read the full story.

With Jayland Walker's mother looking on, Biden says 'we have to do better' on police reform — Feb. 8, 2023

In his State of the Union address Tuesday night, President Joe Biden called attention to the death of Tyre Nichols last month at the hands of police in Memphis, Tennessee — and he spoke about the need for more training and resources for law enforcement officers and the communities they serve to prevent such actions.

Nichols' parents were guests at the speech at the U.S. Capitol, as was Pamela Walker, the mother of Jayland Walker, the Black man shot and killed by Akron police last year. It could be early April before state prosecutors present the deadly use of police force case to a grand jury in Summit County, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost told the Beacon Journal in January. Read the full story.

Akron police chief fields questions on Jayland Walker case in tense community meeting — March 29, 2023

Akron Police Chief Steve Mylett faced a skeptical and occasionally critical audience during a two-and-a-half hour meeting Wednesday night on developments in the Jayland Walker shooting case.

About 100 attendees came to the first in a series of community conversations, prepared with questions that remain unanswered 10 months after Walker was shot and killed in a hail of gunfire. Read the full story.

Jayland Walker: What the state investigation of fatal Akron police shooting may reveal — April 2, 2023

The Akron community may finally get a deeper understanding of what happened the night police killed Jayland Walker nine months ago.

A state prosecutor this month will present the case to a grand jury made up of Summit County residents who will decide whether to indict any of the eight Akron police officers who shot Walker 46 times.

Police involved in fatal shootings rarely face criminal charges in the U.S. And if the grand jury declines to charge any Akron police officers – determining reasonable officers would have taken the same action facing the same situation – Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said he will immediately release a massive trove of information state investigators have gathered since the wee morning hours of June 27 when Walker died. Read the full story.

'Solemn duty:' Ahead of Jayland Walker case, what we know about the grand jury process — April 2, 2023

When a special grand jury is chosen next week in Summit County to consider the shooting death of Jayland Walker by Akron officers, this will be out of the norm for several reasons.

This will be the county’s first special grand jury. The Ohio Attorney General’s Office, instead of the county prosecutor, will present the case to the grand jury.

The grand jury’s decision will be watched nationwide, with protests expected that many fear could be more extreme than those that followed Walker’s shooting death last summer. Read the full story.

Downtown Akron braces for more possible protests as grand jury reviews Jayland Walker case - April 10, 2023

On Monday, a special grand jury begin reviewing the evidence in Jayland Walker's shooting death by Akron police.

Most Akron business owners are reluctant to talk about the possibility of more unrest following developments in the case.

One owner cited concerns that their comments could be taken the wrong way no matter what they said, leading to backlash. Others simply declined to comment with no detailed explanation. Read the full story.

Walker family attorney questions Akron's protest preparations as grand jury convenes - April 10, 2023

As a special grand jury convenes in Akron to review the killing of Jayland Walker by eight police officers last year, the Walker family's attorney has issued a statement calling for "equal access to justice and a fair process."

In advance of the grand jury review, Walker family attorney Bobby DiCello on Monday criticized the city's response to potential protests about the grand jury decision.

"...The city is boarding up windows and bracing for violence. Why? Because the City of Akron doesn't trust a significant portion of its citizens," DiCello said. Read the full story.

Akron Police Chief Mylett discusses protest zone, department's plan for protests - April 12, 2023

In advance of a special grand jury's decision on potential charges in the death of Jayland Walker last summer, Akron Police Chief Steve Mylett has issued a video statement regarding possible protests and how police will respond.

Mylett said Akron police intend to allow people to protest and referred to American Civil Liberties Union guidelines available on the city's grand jury information website, akronupdates.com. Read the full story.

Who was Jayland Walker? Family, friends knew man killed by Akron police as funny, loving - April 12, 2023

For many in the Akron community, Jayland Walker is known as the man who was fatally shot dozens of times last summer by eight police officers.

His death prompted widespread protests and led to increased demands for police reform, culminating with the passage by Akron voters in November of a charter amendment that created a citizens' police oversight board.

But to his family, friends and former teammates and coach, Walker is remembered as a quiet, funny and loving man — someone they say they never imagined would die in such a tragic way. Read the full story.

Grand jury decision: No criminal charges for 8 Akron officers who shot Jayland Walker -- April 17, 2023

The eight Akron officers who shot and killed Jayland Walker last June won’t face criminal charges in his death.

A special grand jury of six women and three men, including two Black citizens, on Monday returned a no-bill in Summit County Common Pleas Court, which means the jurors found the actions of the officers were justified.

Read the full story.

'Our hearts are hurting': Jayland Walker's family reacts to grand jury decision -- April 17, 2023

Most of Jayland Walker's family didn't speak at a press conference that dealt with their continued trauma. They had a chorus to do so for them.

And that group stated loudly what Walker's mother, Pamela, and sister, Jada, could not or would not.

Read the full story.

Akron police to launch internal probe into Jayland Walker case, won't name officers involved -- April 17, 2023

The names of the eight officers now under internal investigation in the death of 25-year-old Jayland Walker will not be released due to threats, city officials said Tuesday, but the officers will remain on administrative duty.

A special grand jury in Summit County Common Pleas Court on Monday returned a no-bill on all eight officers, which means the jurors found the actions of the officers were justified.

Akron police will now conduct an internal investigation to determine if the officers violated any department regulations.

Read the full story.

'Seen it too many times': Akron community reacts to decision in Jayland Walker shooting -- April 17, 2023

Members of the community have begun reacting to the news that a special grand jury has decided eight police officers involved in the killing of Jayland Walker last summer will not be charged.

The incident has become the subject of protests, the creation of a new civilian-led police review board, plans for new cruiser dashcams and strained relations between Akron’s police and citizens.

Read the full story.

'It is us that are dying day in and day out': Jayland Walker case prompts protests -- April 18, 2023

Community members marched through downtown Akron on Tuesday, the day after it was announced that a special grand jury decided the eight Akron police officers involved in the killing of Jayland Walker last summer will not be criminally charged.

The Justice for Jayland Walker March was organized by The Freedom BLOC, Akron NAACP, Akron Urban League and St. Ashworth Temple Church of God in Christ. Demonstrators gathered at First Congregational Church of Akron, 292 E. Market St., before stepping off around 2:40 p.m., chanting, "Whose streets? Our streets!"

Read the full story.

Akron police chief: 'Nothing is jumping out' yet as policy violation in Jayland Walker case -- April 18, 2023

Akron Police Chief Steve Mylett said Tuesday he did not immediately see a violation of department policies in the actions of the eight officers who shot 25-year-old Jayland Walker, but he did not rule out the possibility of such a result at the end of the just-launched internal investigation.

"Nothing is jumping out at me right now," Mylett said in an interview with the Beacon Journal. "But there could be, I don't know."

Mylett's interview came less than 24 hours after a Summit County grand jury declined to indict the eight officers for their actions that June night last year. At the time of his interview, Mylett had less than a day to review the state investigative report, noting its summary alone was book length.

Read the full story.

Videos show what led to Jayland Walker's shooting from Akron officers' perspective -- April 19, 2023

Akron officers following Jayland Walker onto state Route 8 told dispatchers that Walker fired a shot, resulting in a “Signal 21” that alerted all police in the city.

Officers chasing Walker on foot after he fled from his car deployed Tasers at Walker three times, with the stun-gun shots either not connecting or having no impact.

As Walker fled, he reached toward the pockets of his hoodie and waistband and raised his arm, leading officers to think he might be reaching for or drawing his gun.

These are among the highlights of videos created at the request of attorneys representing the Akron officers who killed Walker to show what happened leading up to the June 27 shooting from the perspective of the eight who shot him more than 40 times.

Read the full story.

State investigation finds four Akron officers emptied clips in Jayland Walker shooting -- April 19, 2023

A 68-page ballistics report released Monday along with logs of evidence and synchronized still frames from police and highway camera systems detail the exhaustive effort of state investigators to account for all 95 bullets fired in the pursuit and death of Jayland Walker.

Cleared of criminal charges by a special Summit County grand jury Monday, eight Akron officers with standard issue 9 mm semi-automatic Glock handguns fired 94 bullets at Walker as he ran, according to the Ohio Criminal of Bureau Investigation report. As a group, they missed Walker half the time. Bullet shrapnel peppered the parking lot where the 25-year-old Walker died from 46 gunshot wounds.

Four of the officers fired 70 of the 94 rounds, pulling their triggers nearly three times per second as they emptied their clips in less than 7 seconds.

Read the full story.

Jayland Walker was 'great person' who was grieving his 'soul mate,' family told BCI -- April 19, 2023

In the two weeks after his death, people who knew Jayland Walker best said he was a good person and getting involved in a police pursuit was not like him.

“The only thing he may have gotten probably is a speeding ticket,” Pamela Walker, Jayland's mother, told an Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation special agent two days after Akron police officers fatally shot him following a car and foot chase. “It's not in his nature or the way he grew up to even be mean or, or any kind a way but respectful.”

Although his mother and sister, Jada Walker, told the BCI investigator he did not seem especially upset or depressed, much less suicidal, they did acknowledge that his fiancée, Jaymeisha Beasley, had been killed in a traffic crash in late May.

Read the full story.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: What happened to Jayland Walker? Read about Akron police shooting