• Live
    • Audio Only
  • google plus
  • facebook
  • twitter
News

Demonstrations in Michigan Over Patrick Lyoya's Killing

  • People take to the streets of Grand Rapids, Michigan in the name of Patrick Lyoya, who was shot and killed by police. Apr. 14, 2022.

    People take to the streets of Grand Rapids, Michigan in the name of Patrick Lyoya, who was shot and killed by police. Apr. 14, 2022. | Photo: Twitter/@asjeplak

Published 14 April 2022
Opinion

The disturbance broke out after police released images showing the officer shooting a black immigrant in the head.

Protesters gathered in the city of Grand Rapids, in the U.S. state of Michigan, on Wednesday night after local police released images of the killing of a black man by a white police officer.

RELATED:
China Condemns US Officials' Visit to Taiwan

The officer, whose name has not been released, shot Patrick Lyoya in the head following a traffic stop last April 4. Footage of the incident shows the officer lying on top of Lyoya as the two men seem to struggle. The video also shows the white officer shooting the 26-year-old black man in the head.

In response to those images, several hundred protesters, some carrying "Black Lives Matter" signs, gathered in front of the Police Department and demanded that the name of the officer who shot Lyoya and caused his death be released.

The shooting took place in front of the victim's home. The officer initially pulled Lyoya over for driving with plates that did not belong to the vehicle.

One of the videos shows the man running away from the officer before they begin to struggle on the ground. New Grand Rapids Police Chief Eric Winstrom said the two men had been fighting over the officer's Taser.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer after speaking with Lyoya's family said: "He came to the United States as a refugee with his family fleeing violence. He had his whole life ahead of him". 
 
Police violence against blacks in the U.S. has received more serious attention in recent years, especially after the killing of George Floyd by police officer Derrick Chauvin in 2020.
Such incident sparked some of the largest protests in modern U.S. history and eventually spread around the world.

Tags

U.S. Michigan
Comment
0
Comments
Post with no comments.