AKRON, Ohio — The city of Akron has reached "an agreement in principle" to settle a federal lawsuit that alleged "unconstitutional" practices by its police department against protestors, according to 3News media partner Signal Akron.
The case stems from April of 2023, when residents and others took to the streets to speak out against a grand jury decision not to charge the eight Akron officers who shot and killed Jayland Walker following a 2022 pursuit. The department confirmed it used pepper spray and smoke bombs in an effort to disperse some demonstrators, claiming some had begun throwing rocks and bottles at officers.
In the days following the incident, the Akron Bail Fund filed a complaint in Northern Ohio's U.S. District Court, accusing police of "suppressing free speech and expression, including by using unnecessary police violence, against peaceful demonstrators who are speaking out against the shooting of Jayland Walker." The city eventually agreed to a restraining order that restricted officers' ability to use certain types of "non-lethal force" against demonstrators.
Per Signal Akron, the settlement of the lawsuit will not include financial compensation, but rather concrete policy changes for the Akron Police Department. The agreement is still not finalized, however that is expected to happen "within a week's time."
"As the docket entry reflects, we've reached an agreement in principle however it is not finalized, and details are still being discussed so we have no comment to provide at this time," a spokesperson for Akron Mayor Shammas Malik told the publication.
The lawsuit is separate from another case involving 2022 protests immediately following Walker's death, where the city eventually agreed to pay 22 plaintiffs $747,000. Those plaintiffs were represented by the civil rights law firm Friedman, Gilbert + Gerhardstein, which also filed the April 2023 complaint.
The proposed settlement timeline could coincide with the two-year anniversary of Walker's death, which will take place on June 27.
