AKRON, Ohio — The funeral of Jayland Walker on Wednesday at the Akron Civic Theatre was a blend of heartfelt, loving remembrances, and expressions of anger and despair.

Walker’s family and friends told of a young man who was soft spoken, funny and kind. They also expressed anger and despair over the killing of the much-loved young Black man.

Walker was killed by police June 27, after the 25-year-old led officers on a chase, eventually stepping from his vehicle and turning toward officers. Police said he made a movement they perceived as a threat and eight of 13 officers opened fire.

The shooting is under investigation by the Ohio Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation.

At a press conference following the funeral, Walker family attorney, Bobby DiCello, said the United Nations’ Expert Mechanism to Advance Racial Justice and Equality in Law Enforcement will investigate the shooting too.

“We are very concerned about the way in which the police have handled the interview of these officers,” DiCello told reporters.

Roddray Walker (left), with Bobby DiCello, expressed despair at Walker's cousin's death and said nonviolent action at the grassroots level is needed to bring change. (Jennifer Conn/Spectrum News 1)

DiCello said the city of Akron “showed horrible pictures of Jayland to frame him as a monster,” and that the officers involved are aligning their stories to follow a set narrative.

“And we're going to drill down to the bottom to see, to figure out exactly whether or not that is true,” he said.

The day began at 10 a.m. with calling hours, which were open-casket, followed by the funeral at 1 p.m.

On Main Street outside the venue, a few masked attendees were pacing the sidewalk or standing motionless against the wall wearing all black and carrying long guns.

A line was formed at the doors, and people waited calmly to be scanned and have bags searched before entering the Civic Theatre complex.

Once inside, attendees received a program, which featured photos of Walker with his family and his late fiancée, Jaymeisha Beasley, who died in May in a hit-and-run crash on I-71 outside Cincinnati.

The program included a short narrative about Walker framed by photos of him with his mother, Pam Walker, and his late father, Ed Walker.

All the programs had been claimed by the time the service started, with musical performances followed by prayers and reading of the scripture.

Walker’s best friend, Dupri Whatley, talked about his friend’s musical tastes and things they used to do, before breaking down in tears.

Robin Elerick, Walker’s cousin, said he was soft-spoken and funny.

“When I think about Jayland, I think about someone who just had the biggest heart,” she said.

Walker had been going through a hard time recently, Elerick said, referring to Beasley’s death. As a result, Elerick and Walker spoken on the phone frequently in recent days.

“There were a lot of ‘I love yous,’ back and forth,” she said.

Funeral attendees snapped photos with a special Jayland Walker backdrop, as cameras were not allowed in the service. (Jennifer Conn/Spectrum News 1)

Walker’s cousin, Roddray Walker Jr., a Sherwin Williams professional living in Houston, Texas, spoke at the press conference following the funeral. Walker had also spoken on behalf of his cousin at a unity gathering Tuesday night, reminiscing about catching fireflies together and playing video games.

At the press conference, Walker voiced his frustration at the shooting death of his cousin, saying he chose to leave his daughters, who are 4 and 6, at home instead of bringing them to Ohio.

“Because I don’t want them to be exposed to the reality of what being Black in America is,” he said tearing up.

Walker said he has lost two cousins to police shootings, Jayland Walker and Norman Cooper, who was killed in San Antonio.

“What do I do? How do I respond? I'm tired of sitting on the sidelines, being a spectator,” he said. “I just don't know where to turn to.”

Many of the questions during the press conference focused on the officers who shot Walker, whose names have not been released.

Little information is publicly available, because BCI’s investigation is ongoing and when information is released, it will be noncommittal, DiCello said.

“And then it'll be up for all of us to debate the facts of that report and for our firm to investigate, this team to investigate, that report,” he said.

Walker was asked what he would tell the people of Akron about where they should be emotionally and mentally amid it all.

“Mentally they should be enraged,” he said, “But focus that energy on productive things, nonviolent acts to force change, systemic change. I think it starts grassroots, local lawmakers and policy makers. And then also the church. Look to the church.”