WASHINGTON: A few hundred protesters lined up on Sunday at the Akron, Ohio after the release of the body’s camera recorded that showed the police fatal shooting a black man with several dozen bullets.When anger rose to the latest police murder of a black man in the United States, and the authorities begged calm, the crowd lined up to the city hall carrying banners with slogans -slogans such as “justice for Jayland.”
The slogan refers to Jayland Walker, 25, who was killed Monday after the officers tried to stop his car because of traffic violations, the police said.Sunday marks the fourth day of successive protests. Peaceful demonstrations but for a tense moment where some protesters approached the police line and shouted at them.After the first rally, the crowd remains on the road to protest.Concerned that the potential of the riots, the authorities in the city of 190,000 people moved snow plows and other heavy equipment near the police department to serve as a barrier.
After initially giving some details of the shooting, the Akron Authority released two Sunday videos: one which was a compilation of body camera recordings, body-cam frames and voices, and another complete body-cam record of all pursuit and shooting and shooting.Sounds explained that Walker did not stop and leave. The police were involved in the car pursuit and said the shot had been fired from the Walker vehicle.After being chased for a few minutes, Walker came out of his car while still moving and running away on foot. Officers tried to conquer it with their Taser, but he kept running.
Some officers finally chased Walker to the parking lot. Body-Cam recording is too blurry to see clearly what happened, but the initial police statement that was released after the shooting said he behaved in a way that caused officers to believe that he caused a “deadly threat.”All officers at the scene fired at the Walker, shot several times in a row.He was declared dead at the scene.
The incident was the latest death of an African-American citizen in the hands of the police, an event that had triggered mass protests over racism and police brutality.”Many want to broadcast their complaints in public, and I fully support the right of our population to gather peacefully,” the Mayor of Akron and Horrigan told a press conference, saying that he was “broken hearted” for the event.
“But I hope the community can agree that violence and destruction are not the answer.”He also said that an independent investigation was being carried out.Police Chief Steve Mylett said he did not know the number of bullets fired on the Walker, but the medical examiner’s report “showed more than 60 injuries to Walker’s body.”
He added that the eight officers involved in Walker’s death had been placed in the administrative leave paid until the investigation was completed.The authorities cancel the planned festival for the weekend of July 4.Basketball star LeBron James, a native Akron, said in a Sunday tweet that he prayed for his city.
