Black man shot by US police had 46 bullet wounds: medical examiner

A 25-year-old Black man shot and killed by police in Akron, Ohio, while fleeing a traffic stop had 46 gunshot wounds, the medical examiner’s office said Friday.

A summary of the autopsy findings on Jayland Walker was released by Summit County medical examiner Lisa Kohler, the Akron Beacon Journal newspaper reported.

The release of body camera footage of Walker’s June 27 shooting sparked several days of angry protests in Akron, a city of 190,000 people in northern Ohio.

Walker had 46 gunshot wounds including graze injuries and 15 exit wounds, the medical examiner said. Twenty-six bullets were recovered from his body.

“We are not able to say which bullet killed him,” the Beacon Journal quoted Kohler as saying. “He had several devastating injuries.”

She said a toxicology report on Walker for drugs or alcohol came back negative.

According to police, they attempted to stop Walker for a minor traffic violation and he fled on foot after firing a shot from his car.

A handgun and ammunition clip was recovered from his vehicle, police said.

Eight police officers opened fire on Walker. They have been placed on leave pending an investigation.

Walker’s shooting was the latest in a grim litany of Black people dying at the hands of police in the United States that has ignited widespread protests against racism and demands for police reform.

The push for change gained momentum after a white Minneapolis police officer knelt on the neck of George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man, until he died in May 2020.

Floyd’s death, which was filmed by a bystander in a video that went viral, sparked months of protests against racial injustice and police brutality in the United States and around the world.