Christopher Schurr Murder Trial: Day two testimony includes taser expert, police tactics professor
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (FOX 2) - The ex-Grand Rapids police officer accused of murdering Patrick Lyoya is on trial for murdering the 26-year-old in 2022.
The trial is taking place in Kent County court and FOX 2 is streaming the coverage every day. Court will resume around 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, with delayed coverage in a live player above.
Second police tactics expert called to testify
The final witness of the day to be introduced on Tuesday is Nicholas G. Bloomfield, a man who spent decades in law enforcement and reviewed hundreds of cases regarding use of force.
"In my work as an expert witness, that review is, is essentially to determine whether or not the actions of an officer were consistent or inconsistent with generally accepted police practices," Bloomfield said.
After about 20 minutes of questioning him on his experience and expertise, prosecutor Chris Becker attempted to introduce him as an expert witness – which was accepted based on his knowledge of police practices and use of force.
Bloomfield explained his process of investigating the Schurr case and says clips show that Schurr did apply acceptable police practices - aside from tackling Lyoya.
"I don't know any law enforcement agency that trains to tackle people," he said.
As the afternoon inched close to court closing, questions turned to the taser. Defense attorney Matt Borgula objected, saying Bloomfield wasn't an expert.
However, Becker said he's speaking about how the taser relates in use of force and that Schurr could have created space between him and Lyoya.
At 4:45 p.m., count was adjourned for the day with plans to return at 9 a.m. on Wednesdsay.
Police tactics professor takes the stand
This time speaking before a jury, professor Seth Stoughton broke down the concepts within law enforcement about using force, imminent threat, and "officer-created jeopardy."
The prosecution called Stoughton as an expert witness to discuss police tactics in reference to Schurr's actions when he engaged Lyoya.
Before lunch, the defense argued against Stoughton's testimony, arguing it would unfairly influence jurors against the defendant when he was pursuing Lyoya and attempted to subdue him.
Stoughton spent nearly the entire day on the stand as he was asked about Schurr's attempts to keep Lyoya under control.
Stoughton analyzes incidents involving police officer.
"The use of force must be proportional to the threat," he said.
Stoughton testified that Schurr was justified in pulling over Lyoya but chasing him created a ‘tactical concern’. In that situation, SToughton said the goal would be for police to minimize their risk.
He said Schurr didn't take that into account and took an unnecessary risk, when instead he could have waited at the car with the person inside the vehicle.
After a brief sidebar not in front of the jury, both sides argued about introducing the Grand Rapids Police Department handbook.
The jury returned shortly after and defense attorney Matt Borgula questioned Stoughton on the taser that the two men were fighting over.
"I'm a use of force expert," he said.
During the cross-examination, Borgula also asked about whether Schurr was ever at a tactical disadvantage through what he saw on video.
Stoughton said no and that just because the man may have committed a felony, it does not justify the use of deadly force.
"There's a there's a fairly famous line that's often taught in police training. It is not better for all felons to die than to escape," Stoughton said.
Disobeying commands would also not establish justification for deadly force, Stoughton said.
Lunch called + Court to resume at 1 p.m.
The judge determined Stoughton's testimony was relevant for the jury to hear, then called a break for lunch.
Law professor who teaches public safety takes stand
Professor Seth Stoughton of the University of South Carolina teaches in the J.D. program at the school. He is also the faculty director of the Excellence in Policing & Public Safety program.
Stoughton was invited to the stand not as a witness, but as an expert whose testimony the judge was weighing whether it would be relevant to the case. The jury was not in the courtroom for cross-examination.
He does research on the area of police tactics, including a concept called "officer-created jeopardy" or the tactics that law enforcement use that could put individuals in a position of danger - "unjustified risk taking" as Stoughton said.
He applied his understanding of the concept to Schurr's pursuit of Lyoya on foot as well as his deployment of the taser at close range.
Through his attorney, Schurr has argued he feared for his life during the traffic stop because Lyoya was reaching for his taser during the incident, claiming self-defense when he fired his weapon.
Seth Stoughton studies police tactics including those that place officers in a position of risk.
Expert on police taser testifies
Bryan Chiles, a senior manager at Axon Enterprise was called to the stand to kick things off Tuesday morning. He works as a test engineer for the manufacturer of police equipment.
That includes tasers - a focal point of the Schurr trial.
Bryan Chiles works at Axon Enterprise.
Tasers "inject electrical signals into the human body or animal and override the central nervous system," he told the court, showing off an older taser model to the court.
A promotional video from Axon was also played, showing how the taser can be deployed.
Chiles had previously investigated the taser held by Schurr, noting that its probes had been deployed, but did not hit anyone.
When asked by the defense about the lethality of the taser, he said it can be dangerous, but won't kill anyone.
Schurr Trial so Far
The first day of the murder trial included opening arguments that lasted about an hour before bringing up several witnesses to testify, including friends of Lyoya and law enforcement that investigated the case.
Big picture view:
Friends of Lyoya and neighbors living in the area of the incident were first called to the stand on day one, describing their relationship with the victim as well as what they saw in the lead-up to the shooting.
That includes Wayne Butler, who was starting his day on Monday when Loyoya was pulled over. At times, he can be heard during video of the struggle encouraging Lyoya to stop struggling.
At one point, he did tell the court that Schurr had control the whole time over Lyoya.
After lunch, the court was showed both dashcam and bodycam footage of the shooting during the first law enforcement witness.
Michigan State Police Det. Sgt. Aaron Tubergen was called to the stand in the afternoon. The officer in charge during the initial investigation by law enforcement, he told the court Lyoya disregarded Schurr's commands, resisted arrest, and pushed the officer.
The final witness was Stephen Cole, the chief medical examiner at Kent County.
The expert witness confirmed the bullet that was fired from Schurr's gun killed Lyoya. He also said Lyoya had a .29 blood alcohol level.
For a full recap of day one of trial, read our coverage here.
The backstory:
On April 4, 2022, Lyoya and a friend had been driving around Grand Rapids when an officer pulled up behind them.
Schurr, the only officer in his squad vehicle at the time, called in 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 walks away from the officer, leading Schurr to try and grab him by the arm. Lyoya instead runs.
The altercation between Schurr and Lyoya eventually led to the officer chasing him, calling for backup, while ordering Lyoya to stop resisting several times. The two continue to wrestle, leading to Schurr to pull out a taser, which Lyoya pushes away.
The scene ends with Schurr on top of Lyoya, who is chest down on the ground. Schurr at times can be heard telling Lyoya to let go of his taser. Minutes later, Schurr draws his gun, presses it against the back of Lyoya's head, and shoots him.
The entire incident happened over 5 minutes, from 8:11 a.m. to 8:16 a.m.
The Source: Previous reporting and Kent County court