AKRON, Ohio — The family of Jayland Walker, the man shot and killed by Akron police officers more than two years ago, has reached a tentative agreement to settle its federal lawsuit against the city.
In a Tuesday filing in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, the plaintiffs and defendants jointly confirmed they "have (an) agreement on settlement terms and are filing the necessary paperwork and processes to affect the settlement." Terms of the agreement have not been disclosed, with the two sides hoping "to present the finalized settlement to the Court before the next status report" within the next month.
When reached by 3News for comment, Walker family attorney Bobby DiCello called talk of a formal agreement "premature," adding that "there are more hoops to jump through" before the agreement is finalized, including an authorization from the federal judge. He said he and his team plan to hold a news conference if a settlement is finalized.
The case dates back to June 22, 2024, when eight officers fatally shot Walker following a pursuit. Investigators discovered law enforcement had fired more than 90 bullets during the confrontation, with more than 40 of them hitting Walker.
Authorities later found a gun in Walker's car that prosecutors determined he had fired at police during the car chase. Walker was not armed when he was killed, but a grand jury eventually declined to indict any of the eight officers, with Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost saying police "did not know at the time Mr. Walker had left his recently purchased gun in his car" and were therefore within their rights to use deadly force due to Walker firing the initial round.
Nearly a year after Walker's death, his family filed the wrongful death suit seeking $45 million, "$1 million for each bullet that struck Jayland Walker." Besides the eight officers involved, Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan and Police Chief Steve Mylett (both of whom have since left their positions) were named as defendants, as well as five higher-ups within the Akron Police Department:
- Lieutenant Daniel Marx
- Sergeant Michael Pasternak
- Sergeant Vincent Tersigni
- Detective Sergeant Michael Orrand
- Sergeant Todd Sinsley
According to 3News media partner Signal Akron, settlement talks had been ongoing "for months." The city has already enacted some changes to police policy, with new Mayor Shammas Malik announcing back in April that officers "will no longer conduct vehicle chases for equipment violations alone." The pursuit of Walker's car had initially begun because of a broken tail light and has also been involved in a similar chase the night before in New Franklin.
In the wake of Walker's death, Akron voters also approved a new Citizens' Police Oversight Board that will scrutinize police use-of-force policies and review internal investigations, however it will not have the authority to conduct its own investigations that run parallel to active departmental probes.
