AKRON, Ohio (AP) — An Ohio medical examiner on Friday will provide a summary of the autopsy performed on Jayland Walker, a 25-year-old Black man killed in a hail of gunfire by Akron police officers.
It is anticipated that Medical Examiner Dr. Lisa Kohler will reveal how many times Walker was shot on June 27 by eight Akron officers at the end of an early morning car and foot pursuit.
Preliminary findings that were released publicly found that Walker’s body had more than 60 wounds. No information has been released yet about how many of those were entrance wounds and how many were exit wounds.
Walker wasn't armed when police killed him. According to authorities, Walker fired a shot from his car 40 seconds into the vehicle chase prompted by an attempted traffic stop for minor equipment violations.
Police body camera footage released by the city on July 3 shows Walker wearing a ski mask, jumping out the front passenger door of his still-moving car and then running into a parking lot. An unloaded handgun, an ammunition clip and what appeared to be a wedding band were found on the front driver's seat of Walker's car, authorities said.
That blurry footage does not clearly show what authorities say was a threatening gesture made by Walker before he was shot by eight officers, seven of whom are white and one who is Black.
Police in neighboring New Franklin Township tried to stop and then chased a car matching Walker's for the same minor equipment violations less than 24 hours earlier. A supervisor there called off the pursuit when the car crossed the township's border with Akron.
Bobby DiCello, an attorney for Walker's family, said at a news conference Wednesday after a funeral service for Walker in Akron that he will hold police accountable for every round fired from their guns. Walker did not deserve to die, DiCello has said.
