• Authorities in Grand Rapids, Michigan have released videos of the fatal shooting of Patrick Lyoya.
  • The 26-year-old Congolese immigrant was shot by an unnamed white officer during a traffic stop on April 4.
  • In two graphic videos, the officer appears to shoot Lyoya in the back of the head while pinning him on his stomach.

On Wednesday, the Grand Rapids Police Department released a series of videos that show the fatal police shooting of Patrick Lyoya, 26, during a traffic stop.

Lyoya, a Black man, was pulled over by an unnamed white officer on April 4, 2022. During the traffic stop, the officer tells him that the license plate does not match the vehicle, and Lyoya asks the officer, "What did I do wrong?"

The videos released during a press conference include the dashcam footage from the police car, bodycam footage from the officer, home security camera footage, and a cellphone video taken by a passenger in the pulled-over car.

The body-worn camera footage shows the officer asking for Lyoya's driver's license and then grabbing Lyoya after he walks away from the vehicle. The officer tries to wrestle Lyoya to the ground several times, and in the video, the officer is first seen using a Taser and heard saying "let go of the Taser."

The body camera video cuts off as the officer is on Lyoya's back; the department said that the camera "deactivated" at that point, claiming that pressure turned it off.

In the graphic footage captured by the home security system, a nearly three-minute struggle between the officer and Lyoya can be seen. Following the struggle, the officer is seen pinning Lyoya to the ground.

In the videos from the home security footage and the bystander, the officer appears to use his Taser at least twice on Lyoya, who on one occasion appears to try to grab the officer's Taser. The videos show the officer wrestling Lyoya to the ground and as he is laying on his stomach with the officer on his back, the officer appears to shoot him in the back of the head. The officer then tells the bystander filming to "Get back!"

"The video clearly shows that this was an unnecessary, excessive, and fatal use of force against an unarmed Black man who was confused by the encounter and terrified for his life," Ben Crump, Lyoya's family's attorney said at a press conference today, calling for the officer to be prosecuted in court and fired.

According to Crump, Lyoya immigrated to Grand Rapids as a refugee fleeing violence from the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2014.

During a press conference at Grand Rapids city hall on Wednesday, officials said that no officers had been charged so far and that no weapons other than the officer's gun or taser were recovered from the scene. Grand Rapids city manager Mark Washington said the video "was painful to watch."

"'What caused this to happen, and what more could have been done to prevent this from occurring?'" he asked members of the press at the conference.

Grand Rapids Police Chief Eric Winstrom said that the officer was on paid leave with ongoing internal investigations, calling the shooting a tragedy.

Following the release of the footage, hundreds of protesters gathered at the Grand Rapids Police Department. 

 

"Our hearts are with Patrick Lyoya's family and the Grand Rapids community, who are dealing with unimaginable pain and loss," Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said in a statement.

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