Michigan police officer Christopher Schurr arraigned for killing of Patrick Lyoya, pleads not guilty
Written by ABC Audio All Rights Reserved on June 11, 2022
(Grand Rapids, Mich.) — Michigan police officer Christopher Schurr appeared in court Friday to be arraigned for the killing of Patrick Lyoya. Lyoya, 26, was shot in the back of the head after Schurr pulled him over on April 4 for an unregistered license plate.
Schurr, who turned himself in Thursday, pleaded not guilty to the charge.
The judge set Schurr’s bond at $100,000 cash surety, with conditions. Schurr, an officer with the Grand Rapids Police Department, will not be allowed to purchase or posses any firearms or dangerous weapons; he must report to court services; and he is not allowed to engage in any assaults, threatening or intimidating behavior, according to the judge.
Schurr was charged with second-degree murder in the fatal shooting of Lyoya during the April traffic stop, Kent County prosecutor Chris Becker announced Thursday.
If found guilty, Schurr could face up to life in prison.
Schurr’s lawyers were in the courtroom, but Schurr himself appeared remotely.
Grand Rapids Police Chief Eric Winstrom told ABC News Thursday that he would be filing paperwork before the end of the day to suspend Schurr without pay.
Body camera footage of the traffic stop, released by police, showed Lyoya, a native of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, was shot by an officer following a struggle outside a house in Grand Rapids.
The footage shows Schurr struggling with Lyoya, eventually forcing him to the ground and shouting, “Stop resisting,” “let go” and “drop the Taser,” before shooting him. Lyoya was shot in the back of the head, according to the Kent County medical examiner.
Police said Lyoya had grabbed at the officer’s stun gun during the altercation.
“The evidence in this case will show that the death of Patrick Lyoya was not murder but an unfortunate tragedy, resulting from a highly volatile situation,” Schurr’s lawyers, Mark Dodge and Matthew Borgula, said in a statement to Grand Rapids ABC affiliate WZZM. “Mr. Lyoya continually refused to obey lawful commands and ultimately disarmed a police officer. Mr. Lyoya gained full control of a police officer’s weapon while resisting arrest, placing Officer Schurr in fear of great bodily harm or death. We are confident that after a jury hears all of the evidence, Officer Schurr will be exonerated.”
ABC News’ Whitney Lloyd and Kiara Alfonseca contributed to this report.
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