When Akron police officers first fired their guns at 25-year-old Jayland Walker early in the morning of June 27, he dropped to the ground within the first second.
Officers continued to fire for six more seconds, according to body-worn camera footage released by the Akron Police Department on Sunday.
At least one officer called out “cease fire” during the shooting, and what appears to be the same officer waved his arm in an apparent attempt to stop the gunfire, but it continued for another three seconds.
Akron Police Chief Steve Mylett said every officer who fired their gun said Walker turned toward officers and reached toward his waist and then lifted his arm toward officers before they opened fire.
But the body-worn camera footage, which is filmed from cameras on officers’ chests and therefore blurry and shaky as they run and fire, makes it hard to see Walker’s actions.
Jayland Walker Video
Jayland Walker did turn around in a full circle shortly after getting out of the passenger side of his car, before he continued to run forward, away from police, through a grassy area.
When the chase got to a parking lot, the video shows Walker facing police just before he is shot, but there is no clear video showing movement of his arms.
Walker was not armed when he was shot and appeared to have nothing in his hands.
After he fell to the ground, he rolled several times, landing on his back, as bullets continued to pierce his otherwise motionless body.
Akron Police Shooting Video
The Akron Police Department released a total of 14 videos that total just under 19 minutes: one narrated video the department prepared that provides a timeline and shows various footage and still photos from throughout the incident, and 13 body-worn camera videos from police officers.
Eight videos are from the officers involved and five are from other officers on the scene.
None of the videos show any of the aftermath of the shooting; they all stop almost immediately after the gunfire stops.
The videos all start in police officers’ cars; some are from drivers, and some are from passengers. Some videos have audio immediately, while others are silent before audio kicks on about 30 seconds into the video.
Akron Police Report
Around 12:30 a.m., officers tried to stop Walker’s car, a silver Buick, on East Tallmadge Avenue near Thayer Street. Officers said the reason for the stop was a “traffic violation” and “equipment violation,” but they have not identified what those violations were and none of the video shared by the police department shows the attempted stop.
Jayland Walker didn’t stop and drove onto state Route 8 southbound from Tall Madge Avenue.
Shortly after getting on Route 8, an officer reported “a sound consistent with a gunshot,” according to the narrated video from the department. On the raw video, a bang can be heard on the officer’s body-worn camera, and the officer says: “Shots fired. That vehicle just had a shot come out of its door.”
The narrated video shows several video clips and still images from Ohio Department of Transportation cameras in the area. The clips and images show a flash of light from the driver’s side of the car, which police say was a muzzle flash.
The chase continued on Route 8 for a few minutes before they exited onto Archwood Avenue and continued on several city streets until they arrived at the intersection of East Wilbeth Road and Clairmont Avenue.
At that point, Walker’s car slowed down. The body-worn camera footage shows the driver’s door open, with Walker’s upper body inside the car but his left foot dragging on the pavement as the car continues to roll at a slow speed, possibly coasting.
As officers approached the car, several were screaming “show me your hands,” “don’t move,” “put your hands up” and “stop the car,” with frequent use of profanity.
As the car continued to roll from the street over the devil strip, the open driver’s door ran into a police car, pushing the door shut. There’s an audible bang from the collision. The collision also appears to have forced Walker’s car slightly off to the right, but there doesn’t appear to be damage.
The door reopened as the car continued to roll forward, but it closed again as it grazed a tree.
Walker, who was wearing a ski mask, a black tracksuit and white sneakers, exited the front passenger side door as the car was still moving.
Walker ran from the car, and about three seconds later, looked back over his right shoulder and turned around in a circle over his right shoulder, facing the police, before continuing to run through a grassy area.
The chase, continuing on foot, moved to a parking lot. At one point, at least one officer used a Taser, but the police department said “the deployment of tasers was unsuccessful,” and Walker continued to run. During the shooting, a Taser was visible on the ground.
Walker then appeared to turn toward officers, and they began firing rapidly.
Walker fell and rolled several times, coming to rest on his back with his arms out at his sides. His body convulsed with each subsequent shot as he laid on the ground.
Akron Police Body Cam Video
In at least one video, an officer can be seen dropping the clip from their gun after firing several times. The shooting lasts seven seconds.
One officer attempts to stop shooting, shouts ‘cease fire’ three times
About four seconds after the shooting started, an officer came into the left side of one video and began waving his left hand over his head. He kept his arms fairly close to his body, presumably to avoid being caught in the crossfire, but waved his arm rapidly in an apparent attempt to end the shooting.
Watch all Akron Police Body Cam Videos
That same officer appeared to be the one to yell “cease fire” three times before it finally stopped. One video appeared to be from that officer’s perspective. He pointed his gun at Walker for the first few seconds of shooting and appeared to fire his weapon but then pulled the gun in toward his chest with his right hand. His left arm visibly waved in front of the camera.
Akron Police Shooting Video
Throughout all of the videos, the faces of the officers involved, the officers’ identifying tattoos and the cars’ computer screens are blurred out.
But Walker’s body, which was blurred during the public presentation of one of the videos during Sunday’s press conference, is not blurred in any of the videos that were released later in the day.
Mylett said the total number of shots, including the number that hit Walker, isn’t yet known, but he said he expects it to be consistent with the number that’s already been reported: more than 90 shots.
Akron Ohio Protest
Tons of people are on streets protesting against Akron Police and in favor of Jayland Walker.