Mistrial for Michigan police officer charged in fatal shooting of Congolese immigrant

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — A judge declared a mistrial Thursday after the jury couldn’t reach a unanimous verdict in the second-degree murder trial of a Michigan police officer who shot Patrick Lyoya, a Black man, following a traffic stop in 2022.

The judge declared a mistrial and ended the proceedings, a partial victory for Christopher Schurr, who still could face another trial. Lyoya’s death had sparked weeks of protest in Grand Rapids, especially after the city’s police chief released video of the confrontation.

Schurr shot Lyoya, a Congolese immigrant, in the back of the head while the 26-year-old lay facedown on the ground. Schurr told jurors that he feared his life was at stake after losing control of his Taser during an intense struggle in a residential neighborhood. Schurr, a seven-year veteran of the Grand Rapids police department, was fired shortly after he was charged in 2022.

The mistrial came a day after three former Memphis police officers were acquitted in the beating death of Tyre Nichols after a traffic stop. His death more than two years ago was the first post-George Floyd case that revealed the limits of an unprecedented reckoning over police reform and racial injustice in Black America.

Heavy security was present in the small courtroom Thursday morning. Relatively few members of the general public were present compared to the rest of the trial, when the rows were filled with people in support of either Schurr or the Lyoya family.

Schurr stared straight ahead as the mistrial was declared. One spectator sitting on the side of the courtroom near the Lyoya family loudly objected to the mistrial as he left the courtroom.

“Thank you for your time,” Judge Christina Mims told the jury.

Schurr stopped a Nissan Altima driven by Lyoya for improper license plates on April 4, 2022.

Body camera and dash camera footage showed Lyoya running after Schurr requested his driver’s license. Schurr tackled him and a struggle ensued. The officer tried to subdue Lyoya by firing his Taser but he was unsuccessful.

Lyoya eventually got control of the device, which fires electrically charged probes, and Schurr repeatedly demanded that he stop resisting and drop the Taser.

Schurr was on top of Lyoya when he shot him in the head. Videos were a key part of trial and were repeatedly shown to the jury.

The struggle with the Taser was central to Schurr’s defense. He testified that he was “running on fumes” after the fight and in great fear because a Taser can cause “excruciating pain” and injury.

“I believed that if I hadn’t done it at that time, I wasn’t going to go home,” Schurr said of shooting Lyoya.

The prosecutor, however, argued that the Taser had already been deployed twice by Schurr by that time and could only be used in a different mode if Lyoya had decided to turn it against the officer.

It’s not known why Lyoya was trying to flee. Records show his driver’s license was revoked at the time and there was an arrest warrant for him in a domestic violence case, though Schurr didn’t know it. An autopsy revealed his blood-alcohol level was three times above the legal limit for driving, according to testimony.

Lyoya ultimately joined a list of other Black immigrants who sought better lives in the U.S., only to suffer abuse or death at the hands of law enforcement. Before him were Botham Jean, Amadou Diallo and Abner Louima — all men whose cases increased awareness around the global impact of systemic racism in policing.

As in many U.S. cities, Grand Rapids police have been occasionally criticized over the use of force, particularly against Black people, who make up 18% of the population.