AKRON, Ohio (WJW) – The family of a man who was killed by police in Akron is asking for justice.
The 25-year-old was shot and killed by police on Monday. Police said Walker fired a shot from his vehicle during a pursuit. Walker was running from the police when he was killed. The medical examiner said he had multiple gunshot wounds. They had not been able to determine how many times he was shot. Police have not said how many officers were involved or how many rounds were fired.
Jayland Walker’s family, friends and legal representatives held a press conference on the shooting Thursday afternoon.
“We’d just like you to know who Jayland was. We don’t want him to be portrayed as some thug,” said his aunt Lajuana Walker-Dawkins, who spoke on behalf of the family.
“We want honor and dignity at any cost,” she said. “We don’t know what happened. And we’d like to know.”
The family is represented by Bobby DiCello and Ken Abbarno of DiCello Levitt Gutzler. The event was held at St. Ashworth Church in Akron.
“We are here for accountability,” attorney Bobby DiCello said.
“This is Jayland. This is not a monster,” the attorney said holding up a photo.
The family called for peace.
The attorneys said the family has not yet met with the police chief but expected to see body camera video from the police soon.
“We’re going to ask police what de-escalation measures were taken,” said DiCello.
DiCello said Walker was a DoorDash employee. He did not know if he was working that night. According to DiCello, Walker has no criminal record and had a only a traffic violation on his record.
Meanwhile, protestors took to the street Thursday to express anger with police over the killing of Jayland Walker.
Protestors outside the Harold K. Stubbs Justice Center held Black Lives Matter signs. Police officers also stood outside monitoring the protestors. Many protestors walked into the street, stopping traffic.