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GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The family of Patrick Lyoya, a Congolese refugee shot and killed by a Michigan police officer in April, filed a civil lawsuit in federal court Wednesday against the city of Grand Rapids and the officer charged in the shooting.
Lyoya, a Black man, was fatally shot in the back of the head by Grand Rapids police officer Christopher Schurr, 31, following a struggle as Lyoya, 26, attempted to flee a traffic stop on April 4 on the city’s southeast side. Schurr has been charged with second-degree murder in the case and is slated to stand trial at some point in 2023.
The 12-page complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan, claims Schurr violated Lyoya’s civil rights when he pursued Lyoya on foot and did not wait for backup before using lethal force. The family is seeking financial damages for Lyoya’s death, per the complaint.
“Schurr’s actions demonstrated a reckless disregard of his legal duties, as well as a substantial lack of concern for whether death or injury would result from his actions,” lawyers Ayanna Hatchett and Ven Johnson wrote in the complaint, adding Schurr’s actions “demonstrated a malicious risk of harm and an indifference to the consequences of his actions.”
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Lawyers for Schurr maintain he was acting with appropriate use of force during the shooting. Schurr was initially placed on paid administrative leave before being fired after the second-degree murder charge was announced by Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker in June.
The lawsuit also says the city of Grand Rapids created a culture of excessive force by not appropriately responding to complaints against GRPD officers made in prior years.
“We have not yet received the lawsuit and are unable to address the specifics. Upon receipt, we will review the lawsuit and respond appropriately in court,” a city spokesperson said in an email.
Ben Crump, another attorney representing Lyoya’s family, said at a press conference in Detroit Tuesday that Schurr would not have turned his patrol vehicle around to pull Lyoya over in the first place if Lyoya wasn’t Black. When Schurr pulled over Lyoya, he said the vehicle’s license plate did not match the vehicle it was registered to.
“He is coming up with a pretextual reason to stop this Black driver, and that is driving while Black,” Crump said, later adding “you should not be sentenced to death for a traffic stop.”
Crump also has represented the family of George Floyd, a Black man killed by police in Minneapolis in 2020, whose death sparked protests throughout the U.S. against police brutality and racial injustice.
“Schurr initially spotted Patrick and his friend when he was driving in the opposite direction. Just as their cars passed each other, Schurr instantly turned around to follow behind Patrick’s car,” the lawsuit says. “Seconds later, without any discernible ground for reasonable suspicion of a motor code violation or criminal activity, Schurr activated his emergency lights to pull Patrick over.”
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Johnson called it “racial profiling 101.”
Crump and Johnson were joined by Peter Lyoya, who is Patrick’s father; interpreter and family friend, Israel Siku and Kent County Commissioner Robert Womack at the press conference, which also was streamed over Zoom.
After the Grand Rapids Police Department and city officials released footage of Lyoya’s shooting on April 13, protesters held several demonstrations and marches calling for accountability from the city’s police.
Footage released by the city includes video from Schurr’s body-worn camera, a surveillance camera from a nearby home and the cell phone of the passenger with Lyoya. It shows Lyoya ran away from Schurr, causing a chase through the front yards of nearby homes. Schurr eventually tackled Lyoya and the two struggled. Schurr could be heard telling Lyoya to “stop” and to “let go of the Taser,” in the footage. Schurr’s stun gun was deployed twice but never made contact.
After about 90 seconds, Schurr ended up on top of Lyoya, who was facedown on the ground. Schurr — who was still yelling “let go of the Taser!” — then shot Lyoya in the back of the head.
City officials have attempted to mend the frayed relationship between its police and residents, particularly Black citizens, since the shooting, including taking steps to improve de-escalation training.
Still, some residents have said Lyoya’s death was preventable, particularly in light of other incidents between Grand Rapids police and the city’s Black population. The Michigan Department of Civil Rights has levied the Grand Rapids Police Department with a pair of discrimination charges stemming from two separate complaints that officers mistreated Black residents in 2017 and 2020.
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Follow Arpan Lobo on Twitter @arpanlobo.
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