Biography
Damean Martin was arrested in the early hours of July 4, 2022, in Akron, Ohio, during mass protests that erupted following the police killing of Jayland Walker, a 25-year-old Black man shot by Akron officers on June 27, 2022. Martin was among nearly 50 demonstrators swept up in what civil rights attorneys later characterized as baseless mass arrests, in which Akron police subjected peaceful protesters and bystanders to violence including beatings, tear gas, and pepper spray. He was charged with Riot (ORC 2917.03), Misconduct at an Emergency (ORC 2917.13), and Failure to Disperse (ORC 2917.04). Martin was transported to and detained at Summit County Jail, where protesters were held at least through the following day in overcrowded conditions — some chained together by wrists and ankles — and were denied medical care and access to phone calls. All charges against Martin were eventually dismissed by September 14, 2022. In June 2023, Martin joined 23 other plaintiffs in a federal civil rights lawsuit filed in Ohio's Northern District court against the City of Akron and nearly 100 defendants, including Akron police officers, Summit County Sheriff deputies, and University of Akron officers, alleging unlawful arrest, excessive force, and malicious prosecution. The City of Akron settled the lawsuit for $747,000.
Custody record
His individual allegations in the Harris complaint describe July 4–5, 2022 custody and dismissal by September 14, 2022, rather than a prosecution continuing nearly a year.
Sources: Source 1.
The June 29, 2023 Harris complaint describes Martin as a 19-year-old Akron father and direct support professional assisting people with disabilities. His individual section states that he joined protests July 1, was arrested in the early morning of July 4, 2022, and was jailed until July 5. The charges were dismissed by September 14, 2022; the source does not establish that as the precise dismissal day. The account is attributed to the civil complaint.