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Jayland Walker had 46 gunshot wounds in his body, autopsy report reveals

By Kiara Alfonseca, ABC News Jul 15, 2022 | 10:51 AM


Angelo Merendino/Getty Images

(AKRON, Ohio) — Jayland Walker, the 25-year-old Black man who was fatally shot by police in Akron, Ohio, had 46 gunshot wounds on his body, according to an autopsy report conducted by the Summit Co. Medical Examiner’s Office.

“The autopsy determined that Jayland had 46 gunshot wound entrances or graze injuries,” chief medical examiner Lisa Kohler said at a Friday press conference. She later added, “The photographic record shows more than 46 labeled wounds because there are exit wounds, bullets beneath the skin and abrasions that were numbered for the purpose of identifying specific injuries.”

Walker also had injuries to his face, heart, both lungs, liver, spleen, left kidney, intestines, pelvis, iliac artery and several bones in his legs, according to Kohler

His manner of death has been ruled homicide and the toxicology report showed no use of drugs nor alcohol by Walker at the time of the incident.

“The family is devastated by the findings of the report and still await a public apology from the police department,” the Walker family’s legal team said in a statement to ABC News.

Walker was unarmed when he was fatally shot by police on June 27 after a traffic stop turned into a pursuit. He was running away when eight officers opened fire on him, body camera footage released by the city showed.

Officials said they attempted to pull Walker over for a traffic violation and an equipment violation with his car. He allegedly refused to stop, which set off a chase that ended in his death.

Officials said a flash of light seen in body camera footage appeared to be the muzzle flash of a gun coming from the driver’s side of Walker’s car.

In a second body camera video, officers are heard radioing that a shot was being fired from Walker’s car. The footage shows an officer following Walker’s Buick off Route 8 and continuing the pursuit on side streets.

At one point, Walker slowed down and jumped out of the passenger side door before it came to a full stop, according to the footage. As Walker ran away from police, several officers simultaneously fired several bullets, fatally shooting him.

A gun was later recovered inside the car, but Walker was unarmed when he was shot.

The officers involved in the shooting are on paid administrative leave and have not been named.

The incident is under investigation by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation. The United Nations has joined, offering help via a task force designed to address racial injustice and inequity in law enforcement.

The national civil rights group NAACP has called upon the Department of Justice to investigate Walker’s death.

“We are urging you and your Department of Justice to conduct a thorough investigation into the murder of Jayland Walker, and – if what we all saw with our own eyes is true – federally charge the officers responsible for his gruesome assassination,” NAACP President Derrick Johnson said.

Walker’s funeral was held just days before the autopsy report, where he was described by family and friends as “kind” and “gentle.”

ABC News’ Amanda Su contributed to this report.

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