Latest news with #UrbanLeagueofWestMichigan
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Yahoo
Lyoya family hurt, Schurr relieved by prosecutor's decision not to retry, advocates say
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — A Kent County commissioner who has stood with the family of Patrick Lyoya since he was shot and killed by a then-Grand Rapids police officer says the family is heartbroken knowing the criminal case is over. '(The Lyoya family is) very hurt, still trying to understand the American justice system. They don't see any excuse for this verdict or for the person who shot their son in the back of the head to be free,' Commissioner Robert Womack said. 'We're going to continue to work them on the healing process.' Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker announced Thursday that he would not retry Christopher Schurr, whom he had charged with second-degree murder in the April 2022 death of Lyoya, a 26-year-old refugee from the Democratic Republic of Congo. After years of appeals, the case went to trial in late April. On May 8, the jury deadlocked. Prosecutor will not retry Christopher Schurr in Patrick Lyoya's death Schurr's attorneys, Matthew Borgula and Mark Dodge, said their client feels relieved and vindicated by Becker's decision. 'But certainly not celebration,' Dodge said. 'As far as the last three years, it's never been anything to celebrate for Mr. Schurr and his family.' 'The prosecutor got this right here, that a retrial wouldn't be good for anybody because at best it would've ended up in another hung jury,' Borgula said. In a Facebook post, the Fraternal Order of Police State Lodge of Michigan commended Becker's choice not to pursue a retrial. 'This decision reflects a recognition of the complex and split-second circumstances law enforcement officers face in the line of duty,' the post read. Schurr juror: One hold-out kept former officer from being acquitted The attorney representing Lyoya's family in a civil wrongful death suit against Schurr said in a statement that the decision not to retry meant the family would never see justice in a criminal court. 'The Lyoya family has not only lost Patrick, but now the hope that former officer Christopher Schurr will ever be held criminally accountable for taking Patrick's life. With today's decision, what was once a pause in justice has now become a permanent reality. This is not a verdict nor the outcome the Lyoya family sought,' attorney Ven Johnson stated. 'We will continue to stand with the Lyoya family in their pursuit of truth, accountability and justice for Patrick, and are awaiting our day in civil court.' Womack praised Becker's work on the case and takes the prosecutor at his word that a guilty verdict would be difficult to achieve. 'I think the jury is reflective of the community, that we are split in half when it comes to this situation here in Grand Rapids,' Womack said. Womack added that he remains disappointed the case wasn't retried and wants to continue to fight for police reform in the city of Grand Rapids. Greater Grand Rapids NAACP President Cle Jackson and Urban League of West Michigan President Eric Brown feel differently. 'My initial reaction was anger. I'll be candid. It was anger then it moved to disappointment and devastation. I could not believe this was the decision he came to,' Brown said. They say Lyoya's family and the community deserved another chance. 'It's devastating. It's devastating. We had an opportunity to again to go back, retry and try to get it right. Patrick deserves that,' Jackson said. 'The Lyoya family deserves that opportunity to retry. Just like the ex-officer Schurr had an opportunity to due process.' 'We had the opportunity to get it right, didn't make it, but we had another opportunity to do even better, to try even harder. I think that was justice disserved,' Brown agreed. They argued the leader of Michigan State Police, the Grand Rapids police chief and the Grand Rapids city manager all should have been called to testify as expert witnesses, and questioned why a woman whose husband is a police officer was allowed to remain on the jury. Jackson and Brown say they have reached out to Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, urging her to take up the case. Grand Rapids leaders promise 'commitment to police reforms' despite no Schurr retrial Womack said his goal now is to continue to fight for reforms to policing in West Michigan. 'This just gives us more motivation to fight for better police and community relations. That's only going to change with policies, training and laws being changed that will protect our community from incidents like this,' he said. Jackson, the NAACP president, noted the Grand Rapids Police Department did make some changes to policy after Lyoya's death, but said those changes don't have any teeth. 'There's no level of enforcement and oversight embedded in policy,' he said. In statements Thursday, Grand Rapids city leaders said they are committed to ongoing dialogue and reforms. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Yahoo
Will Michigan AG retry Christopher Schurr in death of Patrick Lyoya?
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — The future of the murder case against former Grand Rapids police officer Christopher Schurr is up in the air after the Kent County prosecutor announced he would not pursue the case any further following a mistrial. When Prosecutor Chris Becker said Thursday he the criminal case against Schurr, he was asked about the possibility of Attorney General Dana Nessel taking over the prosecution herself. 'Technically, the attorney general could,' Becker said. 'She never has before. But technically I think that's always a possibility.' Becker said he hadn't heard from Nessel's office about that possibility. Now that Becker is done with the case, Lyoya family advocates are pressing Nessel to take it on. Lyoya family hurt, Schurr relieved by prosecutor's decision not to retry, advocates say The Greater Grand Rapids NAACP and the Urban League of West Michigan have both reached out to her office urging her to prosecute the case. 'We are imploring her to file charges to pick this up so the Lyoya family as well as our community can have the justice it so rightly deserves,' said Eric Brown, the president and CEO of the Urban League of West Michigan. 'We are all in support to carry this as far as it can be carried out.' After Schurr shot and killed in April 2022, Attorney General Dana Nessel that she would take up the murder case against Christopher Schurr if she was asked to. At an event in Kalamazoo back then, Nessel said she often invites local prosecutors to refer these types of cases to the AG's office. She argued that prosecuting officer-involved shootings can create friction between the prosecutor and the police department, so it's often better for the AG to handle it. 'The Department of the Attorney General is best suited to handle these cases,' she said in 2022. Of course, Becker ultimately took on the case himself. Earlier this month, his case ended in a hung jury and the judge . Explaining his decision not to retry the case, Becker argued the jury overwhelmingly leaned toward acquittal with a 10 to 2 vote in the end. He said most of the time, another trial doesn't end differently. Prosecutor will not retry Christopher Schurr in Patrick Lyoya's death 'What it boils down to is I don't think we reach a different verdict if I do a retrial … the jury came back deadlocked,' he said. It's an open question what Nessel will do. News 8 has reached out to Nessel asking if her office will get involved. Nessel's on the case came amid jury deliberations on May 6. She responded to a social media commentator who claimed Nessel wanted her 'own ,' the former Minneapolis police officer who was convicted of murdering George Floyd. 'Christopher Schurr was charged and tried by Chris Becker, the Republican Kent County Prosecutor,' Nessel wrote in a response on social media. 'My department had no involvement.' Now it's her call whether she wants to get involved. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Grand Rapids residents call for justice and police accountability at NAACP meeting
Attendees at the "Justice Delayed Is Still Justice Denied" event organized by NAACP in Grand Rapids City on May 14, 2025 | Photo by Erick Diaz Veliz Dozens of residents gathered Wednesday evening for a community listening session organized by the Greater Grand Rapids NAACP in collaboration with the Urban League of West Michigan. Titled 'Justice Delayed Is Still Justice Denied,' the event allowed participants to share comments, calls for justice, and frustration over the 2022 death of Black motorist Patrick Lyoya by white former Grand Rapids Police officer Christopher Schurr. During community testimonies and opinions, citizens and community leaders from Grand Rapids expressed their discontent with what they say is ongoing police abuse and frustration over last week´s mistrial in the Schurr case and their demand for a retrial. Schurr was charged with second-degree murder in the shooting of Lyoya, a 26-year-old Congolese refugee, in the back of his head during a traffic stop on April 4, 2022. The trial concluded May 8 without a jury decision after Kent County Circuit Judge Christina Mins declared a mistrial which sparked collective outrage in the community. The listening session began with speeches from leaders of the organizations involved in this event, attorneys, and social activists. ¨This system is inherently evil because when you have the audacity to draw your side arm and shoot a young man who is 26 years old who poses no threat to you in the back of his head, that's evil and not justifiable,¨ NAACP President Cle Jackson said. ¨We will continue the fight that has been for decades around accountability within the Grand Rapids police system,' Eric Brown, Urban League of West Michigan president said during his virtual speech. ¨We will not rest until we get to make sure that police are going to be held accountable for their misbehaviour. They are not above the law,¨ Brown remarked. Among the speakers, civil attorney Steven Drew provided legal police contexts to the public and answered community questions. 'This is nothing new. I even learned that suing the police is a difficult thing, because the police are called the blue code, always coming and trying to help each other among them,' Drew emphasized. Drew also mentioned that during Schurr's trial, the defense requested a mistrial several times, and the jury denied those requests. However, the mistrial occurred anyway because the jury couldn't reach a unanimous verdict. He clarified that in criminal cases, all twelve jurors must agree on a verdict; otherwise, they must declare a mistrial, as has happened. Fridah Kay, founder of A Glimpse of Africa and an African immigrant, emotionally emphasized the suffering of Lyoya's family and the problems faced by immigrants and refugees. 'It is very hard, especially for me as an immigrant and my refugee community. We have so many competing needs, and then to just imagine, you have to keep up finding a system that is not giving you a chance,' Kay said to those gathered for the event. 'I spoke to Patrick´s dad, and he is exhausted. He is tired. He is really not trying to do this, but this is what we have. This is all we can do.' During public commentary and testimony, reported instances of police abuse and brutality did not take long to come up over the microphone. Concerns over jury selection were also expressed among the audience. Lamar Fourcha, 35, a Grand Rapids resident, recounted how he was brutally pulled from his car and thrown to the ground by more than five police officers the night of April 5, 2024, outside his home, as he was returning from work. Fourcha said his wife was also arrested as she watched them handcuff her husband on the road. Although Fourcha said he was cleared of all charges filed against him by the police, he lost his job and his home, and is undergoing therapy as a result of the police abuse. He still sees the same officers that he contends violently arrested him. 'There needs to be some type of accountability on the GR police department, because I see these same officers that assaulted me during the night, on third shift. I see them on TV shows. I see them still going as if everything is okay,' said Fourcha. Outrage over the impunity enjoyed by police in the abuse of Black and brown people was a recurring theme brought up by those in attendance. 'I am not going to turn the other cheek. It is time to keep fighting. They think we are weak. They don't know us. You don't know us. Don't be afraid, and let's show them something different,' Jocelyn Robinson, 76, and a Grand Rapids resident, said. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Attendees at the "Justice Delayed Is Still Justice Denied" event organized by NAACP in Grand Rapids City on May 14, 2025 | Photo by Erick Diaz Veliz Attendees at the "Justice Delayed Is Still Justice Denied" event organized by NAACP in Grand Rapids City on May 14, 2025 | Photo by Erick Diaz Veliz Attendees at the "Justice Delayed Is Still Justice Denied" event organized by NAACP in Grand Rapids City on May 14, 2025 | Photo by Erick Diaz Veliz Attendees at the "Justice Delayed Is Still Justice Denied" event organized by NAACP in Grand Rapids City on May 14, 2025 | Photo by Erick Diaz Veliz "Justice Delayed Is Still Justice Denied" event organized by NAACP in Grand Rapids City on May 14, 2025 | Photo by Erick Diaz Veliz NAACP president, Cle Jackson, at the "Justice Delayed Is Still Justice Denied" event organized by NAACP in Grand Rapids City on May 14, 2025 | Photo by Erick Diaz Veliz Attendees at the "Justice Delayed Is Still Justice Denied" event organized by NAACP in Grand Rapids City on May 14, 2025 | Photo by Erick Diaz Veliz Attendees at the "Justice Delayed Is Still Justice Denied" event organized by NAACP in Grand Rapids City on May 14, 2025 | Photo by Erick Diaz Veliz Attendees at the "Justice Delayed Is Still Justice Denied" event organized by NAACP in Grand Rapids City on May 14, 2025 | Photo by Erick Diaz Veliz
