GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – A Michigan police officer fatally shot a Black man in the back of the head during a struggle over a stun gun, according to a video released by authorities.
Patrick Lyoya, 26, was shot on April 4 outside a house in Grand Rapids, Michigan, according to WOOD-TV. The white officer with the Grand Rapids Police Department, who has not been identified, repeatedly demanded that Lyoya “let go” of his stun gun, according to The Associated Press. At one point, the officer yelled, “drop the Taser!”
Grand Rapids police Chief Eric Winstrom released videos from the officer’s body camera, the police cruiser’s dash camera, a home surveillance doorbell camera and a cellphone Wednesday afternoon, MLive.com reported.
Two of the videos show the officer shooting Lyoya, a native of the Democratic Republic of Congo, from different angles, according to WWMT-TV.
The officer’s body camera was deactivated just before the officer fired the single shot, the television station reported. It was unintentionally turned off during the officer’s struggle with Lyoya, police said.
“I view it as a tragedy. … It was a progression of sadness for me,” Winstrom, who became Grand Rapids chief in March, said during a news conference.
“This is very regrettable,” Grand Rapids City Manager Mark Washington said during the news conference. “A very sad day in our community.
“When I saw the video, it was painful to watch,” Washington added. “And I immediately asked, ‘What caused this to happen, and what more could have been done to prevent this from occurring?’”
Video shows Lyoya fleeing the scene after an officer stopped him for driving with a license plate that did not belong to the vehicle, according to the AP. They struggled on the front lawn of a few homes. In the final moments of the video, the officer could be seen on top of Lyoya, kneeling on his back at times in an effort to subdue him.
“From my view of the video, Taser was deployed twice. Taser did not make contact,” Winstrom told reporters. “And Mr. Lyoya was shot in the head. However, that’s the only information that I have.”
Lyoya’s father, Peter Lyoya, said he was able to view part of the dashcam video two days after the shooting, MLive reported.
A march was held Tuesday in Grand Rapids, calling for justice and transparency after the shooting, WWMT reported. Several marchers called for Winstrom to release the name of the officer who fired the shot.
“‘Cause when somebody (is) doing bad stuff, when a criminal (does) something bad, I always see them on the news,” Jimmy Barwan, who participated in Tuesday’s march, told WWMT. “But why can’t we see that officer that committed this crime? This hurts.”
The officer, a seven-year veteran of the force, is on paid leave during the investigation, according to the AP.
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