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The Canton community is responding to charges filed in connection with the death of Frank Tyson

Chais Medal was 15 years old when Canton police officers killed her father during a search as part of a drug investigation in 2008.

She and her siblings asked the city for a formal apology. They never got one, just a legal settlement check for about $40,000. She doesn't even know if the district attorney even asked a grand jury to consider charges against the officers, whose names were never publicly released.

She relives her father's death every time she learns of another person killed by Canton police, including Jimmy James (2011), Hayden Stutz (2017), James Williams (2022), Jeff Neff (2023) , Zachary Fornash (2023) and Frank Tyson (2024).

Medal and her aunt Veronica Earley were in the audience Saturday as Stark County Prosecutor Kyle Stone announced that a Stark County grand jury had indicted Canton police officers Beau Schoenegge and Camden Burch on involuntary manslaughter charges in Tyson's death.

Tyson, 53, died after a struggle with officers at AMVETS on Sherrick Road SE.

If convicted of a third-degree felony, officers could face up to three years in prison.

“Today shows that we have come a long way, but we still have a long way to go,” said Earley, who has been a vocal advocate against police brutality since her brother’s death.

Activists: A “small success” to build on

Other activists, Black community leaders and even Tyson's family reiterated Saturday that while they celebrated the announcement of criminal charges against the officers, their fight for accountability and an end to excessive police force is not over.

“It's not the victory we wanted,” said John Tyson, Frank Tyson's younger brother, “… (but) we'll get this small victory and build on it and move on to the next stage and phase.”

Tyson family attorney Bobby DiCello said supporters shouldn't act as if the indictment is the end.

“We don’t want to act like Browns fans today either,” DiCello said. “Do you know what I mean by that? We won a game. And we don't want to get upset about it. This is not the time to criticize and condemn. This is the time to celebrate and honor the name of Frank Tyson. “This is the time to recognize that a step towards justice has been taken on a long and painful journey.”

Cassandra White, the mother of Zachary Fornash, who was killed by police last year, said the news of the charges against the officers involved in Tyson's death was bittersweet as she was happy for Tyson's family, but remembered , that the officer involved in her son's death has not been charged and news of this was announced on social media.

“It's a small victory, but it's a victory,” said White, who attended Canton City Council meetings this year to call for police reform. “Maybe it’s a sign that Canton realizes it has a problem.”

Vix Prunty, of Orrville, who has been active in Canton's protests against police violence since 2020, drove to the news conference Saturday in her blue four-door car that featured more than 1,200 names of Ohioans killed by police officers since 2000.

Among the names are a dozen people killed by officers in Canton. Tyson's name is written on the rear driver's door. The words “No More Names” are written on her hood.

“It's hard because there is no justice for the dead,” Prunty said as she reflected on the charges filed against Canton police officers. “There is literally nothing you can do to right the wrong.”

She advocates for restorative justice that involves family members of those killed in the solution, rather than the current penal system.

Local NAACP, Urban League and activists are calling for police reform

Thomas West, president of the Greater Stark County Urban League, said Tyson's death underscores a “disturbing trend” that he said suggests some police officers believe they are above the law.

He called on the city of Canton to adopt a comprehensive de-escalation policy, mandatory implicit bias training from experts and a resolution in support of U.S. Rep. Emilia Sykes' proposed Security and De-escalation Act of 2024, which would require the U.S. Department of Justice to create one Realistic, scenario-based training plan for law enforcement personnel based on the problems they face on a daily basis.

West and Stark County NAACP President Hector McDaniel also called on the city to create a new Community Policing Advisory Council that would provide community oversight of the police department and have more authority than the current Community Relations Commission, which cases police use of force will be examined after the internal investigation has been completed. The framework for the advisory board has not yet been presented to the city administration.

West said civic leaders met with city officials several months ago to discuss possible changes and now, after the officers' arrests, a new meeting needs to happen soon.

Canton Mayor William V. Sherer II said in a statement Saturday that the city could only provide limited information because of the pending case against the officers.

Canton Repository Staff Writer Kelli Weir can be reached at 330-580-8339 or [email protected].

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