A former Michigan police officer who shot a Black motorist in the back of the headwill stand trial for second-degree murder, a judge said Monday.
On Monday, during a hearing, Judge Nicholas S. Ayoub said in an opinion that he read from the bench, that there was probable cause for the former officer, Christopher Schurr, to be tried on a single count of second-degree murder in the killing of Patrick Lyoya on April 4.
A jury will decide whether Christopher Schurr ’s use of deadly force was necessary “after a full and fair trial,” Ayoub said, according to Associated Press.
Lyoya, 26, an immigrant from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, was fatally shot in the back of the head by Schurr, 31, during a traffic stop. According to CNN, Lyoya tried to flee during the traffic stop. A physical confrontation between the two men ensued.
Michigan State Police Detective Sgt. Aaron Tubergen, whose agency investigated the shooting, said in a court document supporting the former officer’s arrest warrant that Lyoya tried to get away from Schurr after the officer asked for his license. Lyoya traveled approximately 30 feet from the car before being tackled to the ground.
Schurr’s attorney argued that the officer was defending himself and that Lyoya wouldn’t give up. A forensic video analyst, testified that Lyoya failed to comply with 20 commands.
As previously reported by ESSENCE, Lyoya had three outstanding warrants at the time of the traffic stop, and an autopsy found that his blood-alcohol level was three times above the legal limit to drive.
Before immigrating to the United States in 2014, Lyoya lived with his family in a refugee camp in Malawi after escaping a violent conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
