A Summit County special grand jury Monday declined to indict the eight Akron police officers who were involved in the fatal shooting of 25-year-old Jayland Walker last June.
The no-bill decision came down one week after the jurors were empaneled to hear the case into the shooting, investigated by the state's crime lab.
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said at a press conference yesterday that the special grand jury determined that the officers were justified in their actions, after reviewing evidence presented by two states' attorneys and compiled by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation or BCI. That case totaled more than 100 interviews, including from the officers who fired their weapons, and Walker's family.
Demonstrations were held in the wake of the decision. Walker's death last year drew the eyes of the nation and sparked calls for police reform in Akron.
On Tuesday's "Sound of Ideas," we'll start with hearing the community reaction to the grand jury decision by talking to Ideastream reporters who have been covering this story nearly a year now, and who were in Akron yesterday following the decision.
Then, we'll go over the legal process of this case with two expert criminal lawyers, and discuss what's next.
And later in this hour, we'll talk about a moment 50 years ago, when a show called Jacques Brel helped save Playhouse Square.
Guests:
-Anna Huntsman, Reporter, Ideastream Public Media
-Gabriel Kramer, Reporter, Ideastream Public Media
-Abigail Bottar, Reporter, Ideastream Public Media
-Ian Friedman, Criminal Defense Attorney
-Jonathan Witmer-Rich, Professor of Law, Associate Dean, Cleveland State University College of Law
-Kabir Bhatia, Senior Reporter, Ideastream Public Media
-Joe Garry, Director, Jacques Brel
