GRAND RAPIDS, Mich — After weeks of community pressure to release the name of the officer captured on cellphone video shooting and killing Patrick Lyoya during a traffic stop, the Grand Rapids Police Chief has confirmed his name.
Christopher Schurr was the officer involved, GRPD Chief Eric Winstrom said Monday afternoon. Schurr has been with the force since 2015.
Winstrom says he's releasing the officer's name in the interest of transparency, "to reduce on-going speculation and to avoid any further confusion."
Lyoya was killed Monday, April 4 during a traffic stop near the intersection of Griggs Street and Nelson Avenue SE in Grand Rapids.
Authorities said a GRPD officer initiated a traffic stop on a vehicle with a faulty license plate. Lyoya, who was driving the vehicle, fled from police on foot.
After a physical struggle with the officer, Lyoya was shot and killed.
Officer Schurr remains on administrative leave. He has been stripped of his police powers until the conclusion of the Michigan State Police investigation into potential criminal charges.
Once MSP's investigation is complete, their findings will be given to the Kent County Prosecutor’s Office for the next steps in the investigation.
GRPD has also launched an Internal Affairs investigation to determine whether all applicable departmental policies were followed.
13 ON YOUR SIDE has filed public records requests to learn more about this officer's background.
Authorities recently released several angles of video that capture the incident: body-worn camera, in-car video, a neighbor’s doorbell video and cellphone video the passenger of Lyoya's car recorded.
That cellphone video captures the moment Schurr shoots Lyoya.
After Lyoya’s death, community members have been gathering daily to protest the actions of the GRPD officer and to demand justice.
The family laid Lyoya to rest on Friday.
An independent autopsy report showed that Lyoya was shot in the back of the head during the traffic stop.
The decision to not release Schurr's name immediately led to backlash from the Lyoya family, community members and national leaders. During Lyoya’s funeral, Rev. Al Sharpton delivered the eulogy and demanded the name of the officer be released.
“It’s troubling when you can shoot people in the head and remain anonymous," he said during the ceremony.
“An intentional three-week delay in releasing the name of the involved officer, which they clearly knew at the moment of the shooting, is offensive and the exact opposite of being ‘transparent,'" said attorney Ven Johnson, who is representing Lyoya’s family along with attorney Ben Crump.
"Once again, we see the Grand Rapids Police Department taking care of its own at the expense of the family’s mental health and well-being.”
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