Grand Rapids Officer Who Killed Patrick Lyoya Charged With Murder

GRAND RAPIDS, MI — Former Grand Rapids police officer Christopher Schurr was charged with second-degree murder after police said he fatally shot Patrick Lyoya, a Black man who was on the ground when Schurr shot him in the back of the head, Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker said at a Thursday afternoon news conference.

Schurr turned himself in and was expected to be arraigned Friday in Grand Rapids District Court, Becker said. Although second-degree murder usually doesn't include premeditation, it's still a felony offense punishable by up to life in prison with the possibility of parole.

Kent County prosecutors came to the decision more than two months after the shooting, which gained national attention and sparked protests in Grand Rapids, Detroit and elsewhere.

"At the Department of Attorney General, we understand the exceptional resources needed to evaluate police-involved shooting deaths and I commend Prosecutor Becker, his team and the Michigan State Police for the exhaustive review conducted these last two months," Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said. "We must now respect the judicial process and allow the facts of the case to be presented in court."

Lyoya, 26 and a refugee from Congo, was stopped by officer Schurr on April 4 in Grand Rapids for a mismatching license plate on the car he was driving.

When Schurr asked for his driver's license, Lyoya took off running away from the officer. Schurr quickly captured him and they began struggling on a front lawn in a Grand Rapids residential neighborhood while Lyoya’s passenger recorded the scene on a phone.

At one point during the struggle, Schurr was heard yelling "Let go of the Taser" and "Drop the Taser" while he had Lyoya pinned to the ground. Seconds later, police said he fatally shot Lyoya in the back of the head.

An autopsy later showed that Lyoya’s blood-alcohol level was 0.29, which is more than three times the legal driving limit in Michigan.

There are nearly 1,000 fatal police shootings every year, and most are deemed justified. It's rare for prosecutors to charge officers in police-related killings. However, in recent years, charges have been filed in high-profile cases, including the police killings of George Floyd and Laquan McDonald.