AKRON, Ohio — On Monday, a grand jury in Akron began the process of reviewing evidence to determine whether the eight officers who shot and killed Jayland Walker last June will face criminal charges.
As the city begins to prepare for the outcome of the proceedings, the lawyer representing Walker's family, Bobby DiCello, released the following statement:
"Today an Akron grand jury began its process of determining whether the officers who gunned down Jayland Walker last summer will be held criminally accountable for their actions. As part of that process, as Ohio law allows, the officers will be invited to testify before the grand jury on their behalf. Keep in mind that if any other Akron citizen was accused of a crime, they would not necessarily be afforded that same privilege. Simply put, it's a process that favors the officers.
"And against the backdrop of that process, 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. It has decided that if there's going to be violence, it will come from people who are sick and tired of a system that has ignored them and injured them for generations. City leadership doesn’t understand where that anger comes from. It doesn’t want to have that conversation because deep down, it simply doesn’t care what they are going through.
"Today the family of Jayland Walker urges you to be mindful of how important it is that in America, everyone has equal access to justice and a fair process. They are not advocating for anything more than that. Unfortunately, this process is already stacked against them, but they will continue to fight for the justice that they and Jayland deserve."
The presentation of evidence to a grand jury marks the next step following the death of Walker on June 27, 2022, following a police pursuit that ended with eight officers firing roughly 90 rounds at the 25-year-old. The Summit County Medical Examiner determined there were 46 graze or entrance wounds on Walker's body, and the situation prompted controversy and outcry both in Akron and around the country.
The officers involved, who were placed on leave before being brought back on duty in an "administrative capacity," claimed Walker fired a gun out his car window as he fled. Investigators said they did find a weapon inside Walker's vehicle, but stated he was not armed when he was shot.
BCI quickly took over the inquiry, with Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost pledging his team would conduct themselves in an "objective, professional, and independent" manner. This past January, Yost's office had said the investigation had already taken more than 1,100 hours.