Jayland Walker was handcuffed behind his back when his body arrived at the medical examiner’s office to be processed as part of the investigation into the police officers who shot and killed him in Akron last week, according to the medical examiner’s report. reviewed by CNN.
The preliminary report by the Summit County Medical Examiner’s Office contains several pages of thumbnail photos showing Walker dead and handcuffed at the scene and after his body arrived at the medical examiner’s office.
The photos also contain evidence of life-saving attempts, including what appear to be tourniquets and bandages attached to and lying around his body.
CNN was granted permission to review the report after a formal request, but was not permitted to make copies of its contents per office policy.
The final autopsy report will be turned over to the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, which investigates all criminal acts by officers. The autopsy report will be part of what the state attorney’s office considers a case presentation to a grand jury.
Walker was killed in the early morning hours of June 27 after fleeing what police say was an attempted traffic stop, leading officers on an 18-minute car chase and then a short pursuit. That ended after he quickly stopped and officers believed he was reaching for his waist and “I felt Mr. Walker turn and wave and move into a shooting position,” officials said.
Eight officers fired dozens of rounds, resulting in more than 60 gunshot wounds, officials said.
CNN has reached out to the Akron Police Department for comment on its policy on handcuffing people who die during an officer’s arrest.
Photos taken at the medical examiner’s office hours after the shooting show Walker in the body bag and subsequently on the examination table. The photos show dozens of gunshot wounds from the ankle to the cheek on both sides of the body.
Photos in the report also show items such as Walker’s driver’s license and a bloodstained set of handcuffs.
What the police said happened
City and police officials spoke at a news conference Sunday and released 13 police body camera videos of the events leading up to Walker’s shooting.
Walker was unarmed at the time he was killed, Akron Police Chief Stephen Maillett told reporters. A gun was found in Walker’s vehicle after the shooting, police said, and officers said Walker fired a gun from his vehicle during the chase.
A narrated video released by police said about 40 seconds after the chase began, “a sound consistent with a gunshot could be heard” on the body camera footage, and officers told the dispatcher that a shot had been fired from Walker’s vehicle. Police also showed still images taken by traffic cameras that showed a “flash of light” — perhaps a muzzle flash — on the driver’s side of the car.
“It changes the whole nature” of the incident, Maillett said, turning a “routine traffic stop” into a “public safety issue.”
After a few minutes, body camera video shows Walker’s vehicle slowing down and him exiting the vehicle and running. Several police officers got out of their patrol cars and chased him, and officers used tasers in an attempt to stop him, police said, but were unsuccessful.
Moments later, when police say Walker stopped and turned toward officers, they opened fire, killing him.
Eight employees were “directly involved” in the shooting, Mylett said Sunday, and all have been placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation.
The Walker family’s attorney on Tuesday said he felt sick after watching the body camera footage. “It’s devastating to see a young life taken in this frantic, crazy way,” Bobby DiCello told CNN.
“He was unarmed, and I will repeat exactly what the (police) chief said: Every single one of those bullets — and there were over 90 of them — must be accounted for and must be proven to have been fired meaningfully.”
Protests followed the shooting
There were protests over Walker’s killing Sunday that began peacefully but turned violent after nightfall, Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan said. He said there was “significant property damage to downtown Akron” and police said they arrested about 50 people after protesters failed to disperse.
Walker’s family has asked that all protests remain peaceful to honor his memory.
Robert Dejournette, a relative of Walker’s and a local pastor, said the 25-year-old was a fun-loving young man full of jokes who was adored by all.
“We are God-fearing people who believe in God and we want to set an example of that even in this trial,” Dejournette told CNN, “we don’t want any mess or anything like that.”
“Personally, I want to scream and rage,” the pastor said, “but what’s that going to do?”
Horrigan instituted a Monday and Tuesday evening curfew for downtown Akron to avoid further violence. He plans to lift the curfew on Wednesday morning.
“Citizens have a right to have their voices heard, and I fully support that,” the mayor said in a statement on the city’s website. “In an effort to support all those who are peacefully protesting, I plan to lift the curfew at our center starting tomorrow. As always, public safety remains our top priority and I urge our community to report any incidents or threats of violence or destruction so that a small group of agitators does not cause further damage to our city and small businesses.”
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