At the base of a tree on Nelson Avenue, a memorial, somewhat muddied by spring showers, still remembers the life of Patrick Lyoya.
On Saturday, four years will have passed since Lyoya was shot and killed by Christopher Schurr, a now-former officer with the Grand Rapids Police Department. The two had been struggling over Schurr’s taser during a traffic stop on the city’s southeast side when Schurr shot Lyoya in the back of the head. Schurr was charged with second-degree murder and, last spring, his trial ended in a mistrial when the jury was unable to reach a unanimous verdict. Shortly after, Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker announced he would not to retry the case.
When Wayne Butler passes by the collection of teddy bears, flowers and candles that mark the area of Lyoya’s death, he thinks about what he witnessed that rainy morning in April.
“The situation was fixable,” Butler said. “What plays back in my mind is what everybody could have done in the situation so Patrick could be alive and also so Officer Schurr wouldn’t have to go through what he had to go through.”…