AKRON, Ohio — Demonstrations continued in Akron on Friday, nearly a week after the bodycam video showing the shooting death of Jayland Walker at the hands of police officers was revealed.
Friday evening's gathering took place at the parking lot of the Bridgestone offices where Walker was fatally shot, outside of the downtown Akron curfew zone. Dozens of protesters from Northeast Ohio and from out of town came out demanding justice for Walker.
This demonstration remained peaceful, which was different from what some here on Friday had previously experienced.
Two of the individuals arrested during a Wednesday protest actually spoke to the crowd. One of them was the aunt of Brianna Taylor, who was fatally shot inside her home by Louisville police officers in 2020. Taylor's aunt, Bianca Austin, was with the man seen in viewer video being punched repeatedly by Akron police during Wednesday's demonstration.
Austin described the events leading up to her arrest.
"We said, 'Okay, since we can’t go check on the well-being of Jacob (Blake), let's go check on Mike,' the activist that was assaulted that was taken to jail," Austin recalled. "We were at the jail and then once again we were approached by maybe six police squad cars and a wagon. They got out they asked us what we were doing here, I simply told them I’m just checking on our colleague, making sure he’s okay, making sure he’s here safe and sound, making sure he’s getting processed and a bail. Then from there they took us to jail."
After the gathering at Bridgestone, demonstrators marched through the streets of Akron. Some were on foot, others were in cars. They returned to Bridgestone afterwards to hold a vigil for Walker.
The fatal shooting of Walker took place after midnight on Monday, June 27, when officers attempted to pull over his car for a traffic violation. Walker led the officers on a high-speed chase down East Tallmadge Avenue toward State Route 8.
Following the chase, Walker exited his car on Wilbeth Road near the Bridgestone Tire offices while wearing a black ski mask. Bodycam footage shows officers attempting to deploy non-lethal tasers before firing their guns and striking Walker dozens of times. Walker was unarmed at the time of the shooting.
The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation is handing the probe of the incident. The eight Akron officers involved in the shooting have been placed on administrative leave.
Sierra Mason, one of the organizers of Friday night's protest, told 3News that after many heated events this week, it was important for the evening's demonstration to remain peaceful.
"I just want to give the community time to remember that and not to forget what happened to him, but just to remember how good of a person he was and honor Jayland instead of the situation," she said.
Akron's curfew remains in place until 6 a.m. every evening until further notice. Also on Friday, city officials announced that Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan and Police Chief Steve Mylett will be providing daily press briefings beginning on Monday. The city will also be launching an incident website.
Previous Reporting:
- Akron police give timeline of overnight Jayland Walker protests, cite 'disturbances' and 'public safety concerns' in Ellet area
- Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan to hold daily press briefings; launch incident website following Jayland Walker shooting
- City of Akron reinstates downtown curfew following arrest of more protesters overnight
- Weekend concerts in Akron moved from Lock 3 to Goodyear Theatre amid downtown protests of Jayland Walker police shooting
- Akron police to conduct use-of-force investigation after video appears to show officer punching protester