His name was Patrick Lyoya. He was 26 years old, had arrived with his family as a refugee from the Democratic Republic of Congo and father of two children. Wednesday night, about 100 protesters gathered in Grand Rapids, Michigan after videos were released (Warning, the pictures are shocking† depicts a white police officer shooting Patrick in the head after a battle for control of the officer’s taser. Governor Gretchen Whitmer called for calm as the police investigation reaches a verdict.
One of four videos of the tragedy that took place on April 4 shows the police officer lying on the back of Patrick Lyoya, 26, before allegedly shooting him in the head. An altercation between Patrick Lyoya and the police officer had broken out after a traffic stop and shortly before the shooting, the two men appeared to be struggling on the ground to take control of the police officer’s electric pistol. His name has not been disclosed.
Internal research
According to images from the local ABC station, about 100 people gathered in the center of Grand Rapids, a Michigan city of about 200,000 people. Protesters carried ‘Black Lives Matter’ signs and chanted ‘no justice, no peace’.
“I consider this a tragedy,” Grand Rapids police chief Eric Winstrom said of the April 4 event during a news conference on Wednesday, where the videos were released. “The loss of a life, regardless of the circumstances, is sad and I know it will affect our city,” he added. The Grand Rapids police officer has been placed on paid leave pending the results of the Michigan State Police investigation, Eric Winstrom said.
