AKRON, Ohio — Jayland Walker, the 25-year-old Black man who was fatally shot by Akron police officers last month, had 46 gunshot wounds, according to findings released from the Summit County Medical Examiner's Office on Friday.

What You Need To Know

  • The Summit County Medical Examiner's Office released a summary Friday of Jayland Walker's autopsy report

  • Dr. Lisa Kohler said Walker had 46 gunshot wounds

  • Kohler also said Walker was not under the influence of drugs or alcohol when he died

  • The medical examiner's officer said it did not conduct a gunshot residue test on Walker's hands
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During the press conference, Dr. Lisa Kohler, a medical examiner with the county, summarized Walker’s autopsy report, and provided much-anticipated information on the number of shots fired by police.

The number of gunshot wounds, 46, is lower than the amount initially suspected in preliminary findings by the medical examiner, being around 60 gunshot wounds. Kohler said the adjusted number is because of some wounds being exit wounds.

The medical examiner also broke down the numbers and detailed where Walker was shot.

This included one gunshot to Walker’s head, along with gunshot wounds to his heart, lungs and several arteries, causing substantial bleeding and, according to Kohler, ultimately contributed significantly to Walker’s death. 

 

“It’s going to take a lot of time to process,” said Ken Abbarno, an attorney representing Walker’s family. "It's absolutely devastating. The information that we heard today is a lot to take in.”

The deadly officer-involved shooting occurred on June 27.

According to Akron police, officers attempted to pull Walker over for an equipment violation and a traffic violation, but said Walker refused and kept driving.

Officers said Walker opened fire from behind the wheel, less than a minute into the vehicle chase, prompting police to call for backup.

According to Akron police, Walker then hopped out of his vehicle and took off running, with police running after him.

Officers said they first tried to tase Walker, but were unsuccessful.

According to Akron Police Chief Stephen Mylett, the officers then believe they saw Walker reach toward his waist.

That’s when eight Akron police officers opened fire, shooting and killing Walker.

The chief said police later determined Walker wasn’t armed when he was shot, but said a gun was found in Walker’s vehicle.

However, a gunshot residue test, Kohler said, was not done on Walker’s hands, noting that the county medical examiners’ officer no one conducts that test. 

“There are many factors that contribute to false positive and false negatives,” said Kohler. “A positive test does not indicate that a person fired a weapon.”

Besides releasing gunshot wound information, Kohler also talked about the toxicology report her office conducted. She said Walker was not under the influence of either drugs or alcohol at the time of the deadly shooting. 

Walker was laid to rest in front of a large crowd on Wednesday at a downtown Akron theater.

Meanwhile, a curfew remains in effect in parts of the city, because of a few violent protests last week.

The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation continues to lead the investigation into Walker’s death.