A group of protestors went to the Cleveland Cavaliers‘ playoff Game 2 against the New York Knicks on April 18 to demand justice for Jayland Walker. Walker, a 25-year-old Black man, was fatally shot in a hail of more than 90 bullets Akron fired at him after getting into a foot and car chase with the officers in June 2022. On April 17, the Ohio grand jury declined to indict the eight officers involved in the fatal shooting.
#SayHisName #JusticeForJaylandWalker #cavs #CavsNation pic.twitter.com/gtwhcIuVl5
— The Freedom BLOC (@thefreedomBLOC) April 19, 2023
The protestors also stood behind the “Cavaliers Live” post-game show and chanted “Justice for Jayland!”
.@CampyRussell tells @cayleighgriffin that the @cavs came out to play with a purpose in Game 2.#LetEmKnow | @NBAPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/mJeO98VeOb
— Bally Sports Cleveland (@BallySportsCLE) April 19, 2023
“There will be no peace in the state of Ohio,” Rev. Ray Greene said at an April 17 press conference, uploaded by Fox 8 reporter, Tino Bovenzi. “There will be no peace in America until Black men are able to walk down the street without being gunned down. Until Black men are able to wake up, and walk outside without the fear of being murdered by state-sanctioned violence. We will not rest.”
The Akron Police Department declined to officially release the names of the eight officers involved with the shooting, USA Today reported. Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said Walker reached for his waistband in what several officers interpreted as “threatening,” which led to the shooting, according to CNN. Yost also said some of the officers tried to use tasers at first to stop Walker, the AP reported. Walker’s fiancée died a month earlier in a car crash and his family said he was going through a tough time and wasn’t acting like himself. However, the autopsy found no drugs or alcohol in his system at the time of the shooting.
He suffered 46 gunshot wounds, according to a Summit County autopsy. Walker had no criminal record and worked as a delivery driver for DoorDash and Uber Eats. The eight officers involved in the shooting were initially placed on administrative leave, but were reinstated by Oct. 10.
Akron Public Schools canceled classes on April 18 after the grand jury’s decision and the University of Akron had a day of remote learning. The protest zone will remain open for 24 hours a day until April 24.
“While I know that this may not be the outcome that some members of our community may have wanted, I want to reiterate that this investigation was handled completely independently,” Akron mayor Dan Horrigan said, according to CNN. “An outside agency undertook the investigation of Mr. Walker’s death from beginning to end.”
Peaceful protests occurred throughout the city during on April 17.
Protestors have gathered in Akron following the grand jury decision not to indict the officers involved in the shooting death of Jayland Walker.
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— WKYC 3News (@wkyc) April 18, 2023
