Day 4 of testimonies continue in the trial against Christopher Schurr
Former Grand Rapids police officer on trial for murder now on Day 4
Schurr was charged with second-degree murder after shooting and killing 26-year-old Patrick Lyoya during a traffic stop in April 2024. Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker intensified the questioning of Grand Rapids Police Captain David Siver during cross-examination on Thursday. Siver returned to the stand for the Christopher Schurr murder trial.
KENT COUNTY, Mich. (FOX 2) - The murder trial against former Grand Rapids police officer Christopher Schurr continued Thursday.
Schurr was charged with second-degree murder after shooting and killing 26-year-old Patrick Lyoya during a traffic stop in April 2024.
Timeline:
Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker intensified the questioning of Grand Rapids Police Captain David Siver during cross-examination on Thursday.
Siver returned to the stand for the Christopher Schurr murder trial.
He trained Schurr, the former officer charged with shooting and killing 26-year-old Congolese immigrant Patrick Lyoya in April 2022.
Siver believes Schurr was justified in using deadly force during the struggle.
Fellow GRPD Captain Chad McKersie agrees, especially after Schurr couldn’t get his taser to subdue Lyoya.
"When Officer Schurr decided to pull his taser out to attempt to use it in this situation, it was reasonable. He’s already tried lower levels of force that were unsuccessful," said McKersie.
The defense asked, "Would it be reasonable for an officer, when an individual has disarmed them like that, to fear the individual may use the weapon on them?"
McKersie responded, "Yes."
The focus of day four centered on Schurr, who has been previously described as a well-conditioned athlete, being pushed to his physical limit during the confrontation, according to the defense.
His attorneys argue that he was tired and feared for his life.
The defense called in police training expert Lon Bartel, who said it looks like Schurr was struggling to hold his own in the video.
"When you see Chris’s feet up, he’s at a position of disadvantage because his center of gravity is not his own," Bartel said.
"What do you notice about Patrick Lyoya’s body position?" the defense asked.
"He’s got a good stable base. His feet and knees are in contact," Bartel said.
Previous Schurr trial coverage:
On Wednesday, the prosecution continued questioning Nicholas Bloomfield, who reviews uses of force before resting its case.
While Bloomfield agrees Schurr was reasonable in his first actions, he said the ex-officer's use of a taser was done too close to the target and without the goal of retaining possession of the tool.
After the prosecution rested, the defense requested a motion for a mistrial, based on testimony from Bloomfield and another witness called by the prosecution, arguing they were not experts in the fields they gave opinions on and their lack of knowledge of Michigan law.
The judge denied this request, and the defense began calling witnesses, including several members of the Grand Rapids Police Department.
- Day three: Prosecution rests case
- Day two: Testimony includes taser expert, police tactics professor
- Day one: Witnesses take the stand
The backstory:
On April 4, 2022, Patrick Lyoya, 26, and a friend were driving in Grand Rapids when an officer pulled up behind them. Schurr, the only officer in his squad vehicle at the time, called a traffic stop in the area of Griggs Street and Nelson Avenue.
Schurr originally pulled Lyoya over for having improper vehicle registration. Lyoya had already been on probation at the time of the stop, which was for owning a license plate that was registered to a different vehicle than the one he was driving.
Lyoya ignored Schurr's orders when he exited his car. He later walked away from the officer, leading Schurr to try and grab him by the arm. Lyoya instead ran.