A Michigan police officer is under fire for the killing of a Black man during a traffic stop on April 4, according to CNN.
Patrick Lyoya, 26, was killed outside a house in Grand Rapids, Michigan, AP News reports.
Police Chief Eric Winstrom said the department is withholding the officer’s identity unless criminal charges are filed.
Videos captured the scuffle between the officer and Lyoya.
Authorities said the officer instructed Lyoya to pull over because he did not have the correct registration. In the video, Lyoya is seen getting out of his vehicle to speak to the officer, who commands him to return to his car.
“Get back in the car…dude, I’m stopping ya, do you have a license? Do you have a license?” the officer asks in the video.
“For what?” Lyoya replies.
“I’m stopping ya, do you have a license? Do you have a driver’s license, do you speak English?” the officer inquires.
After confirming that he speaks English, Lyoya tells the officer his license is in his vehicle. He then goes to the driver’s side front door, talks with the unidentified passenger, closes his door and walks to the front of his car.
“No, no, no, stop, stop,” the officer is heard saying off camera and places his hands on Lyoya’s shoulder and back.
Lyoya takes off running before the officer stops him on a nearby lawn and yells at him.
The officer’s body camera shows Lyoya grabbing the Taser in the officer’s hand, and halfway through the struggle, the officer’s body camera is turned off. Authorities, however, can not tell if it was intentional or by the pressure of the scuffle, The New York Times reports.
However, video from the officer’s patrol car, a doorbell security system, and a witness’s mobile phone capture the altercation from different vantage points.
The officer is heard yelling, “Let go of the Taser,” before fatally shooting Lyoya in the head and back, CNN reports.
The Michigan Police Department is investigating the incident.
Michigan State Police said the county prosecutor will determine if charges will be filed after completing an investigation and turning over evidence.
Kent County Prosecuting Attorney Christopher Becker requested that the public remain patient.
“The Michigan State Police independent investigation into the incident is not complete. This is an extremely critical incident, and one that everyone involved in the investigation is taking very seriously,” Becker said on Wednesday in a statement, according to CNN.
“While the videos released today are an important piece of evidence, they are not all of the evidence. … By law, we are required to review all available evidence before we consider whether charges should be filed, and if so, what appropriate charges should be,” he added.
Lyoya’s family, which immigrated to the United States from the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2014, retained civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump. Their attorney is now demanding that the officer be terminated and that criminal charges be filed against him.
“The video clearly shows that this was an unnecessary, excessive and fatal use of force against an unarmed Black man who was confused by the encounter and terrified for his life,” Crump said, according to the Times.
Grand Rapids police have a strained relationship with the city's Black residents.
The police have faced scrutiny for excessive force, specifically against Black people, who make up about 18% of the population, AP News reports.
