Armed protesters gathered at the funeral of Jayland Walker, a 25-year-old man shot by the police 60 times following a car chase in Akron, Ohio. Local police said they attempted to pull Walker over for a traffic and equipment violation, but he refused.
Authorities released a photo showing an unloaded handgun, an ammunition clip and what appeared to be a wedding ring on the driver's seat of his car. Walker's fiancée was killed a month earlier when a truck hit the back of a van she was riding in, tossing her from the vehicle on Interstate 71 outside Cincinnati. She was then struck by another vehicle that immediately fled the scene.
On July 3, the city of Akron released body cam footage in which no gun was visible in the victim's hands. Protests against the police in Ohio have intensified since the release of the video.
During Walker's funeral, protestors armed with AR-15s and other weapons were seen manning the venue. They claimed that they want to teach the black community how to "protect" themselves and "police their own communities."
The city has been under curfew since the incident happened and officials warn of roaming protestors targeting police and the city itself. According to Akron's chief of police, bounties have been placed on the heads of the police officers involved in the shooting.
The armed protestors have so far not committed any violent or destructive crimes, but the locality is placed in potential violence and clashes between protestors, police and residents.
During his funeral, mourners filled Akron Civic Theatre and passersby sounded horns in sympathy as family and friends shared their memories of Walker.
"When I think about Jayland, I think about someone who had the biggest heart," said Robin Elerick, Walker's cousin. "He was so sweet and so authentically genuine and that’s what I’ll always remember about him."
The victim's best friend Dupri Whatley recalled how they were like brothers and listened to music together, including one of Walker's favorite rappers, Jadakiss. "I don't want anybody to try to make it seem like my best friend was a bad dude. Because he was not. If it wasn't for him, I probably wouldn't be where I'm at now," he tearfully stated.
Bishop Timothy Clarke of the First Church of God in Columbus said that Walker's death, and the deaths of other men and women, cannot be normalized. "We must not try to act as if this is all right. There's nothing right about this. We should not be here, and Jayland should not be in that box," the preacher said.
The city of Akron declared July 13 a day of mourning.
Law firm says a UN group will conduct an independent probe on the shooting
DiCello Levitt Gutzler, the law firm that represents Walker's family, said at a news conference that that a new United Nations (UN) group plans to investigate the incident.
Lawyer Bobby DiCello said the UN group, named the International Independent Expert Mechanism to Advance Racial Justice and Equality in Law Enforcement, has already reached out to the law firm.
DiCello added that the said group will appoint independent investigators after the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation concludes its inquiry into the shooting. After the independent examination, the team will make recommendations to federal and state governments.
"One of the most important changes that can be implemented now, that we are calling upon the city to take care of immediately, is the implementation of dashcams," he said. "A very simple and important change that would have provided clarity to this situation and to countless situations where Black Americans have been arrested and stopped at traffic stops."
The Walker family do not know the names of the eight officers who shot the victim. (Related: The Sentinel Report: StopHate.com founder David Sumrall says police brutality is over the top and people need to see it – Brighteon.TV.)
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