GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer met Monday with the parents of Patrick Lyoya, who was shot and killed by a Grand Rapids police officer earlier this month.

The governor offered her condolences to Dorcas and Peter Lyoya, who came with their family to the United States as refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Speaking through an interpreter, Peter and Dorcas Lyoya said the meeting was emotional, describing their connection as genuine.

“She showed us concern that she was really touched in a negative way about what happened and that she is mourning with us the same way we are mourning,” Peter Lyoya said.

The Lyoyas said they bonded with the governor over the love a parent has for their child.

“We saw tears coming from her eyes. She cried the way that we’re crying,” Dorcas Lyoya said.

The Lyoyas said they talked with the governor about police reform.

“We told her that they need to review the police and have police reform and to bring new teaching and new things to teach the police to prevent people’s life or a parent to not go through what we are going through,” Dorcas Lyoya said.

Kent County Commissioner Robert S. Womack, who helped coordinate the meeting, said Whitmer remained neutral due to the ongoing investigation.

“She’s definitely not taking a side on this issue … but she most definitely wanted to come here and embrace this family after such a horrific loss,” Womack said.

The shooting happened on the morning of April 4. Video released by the Grand Rapids Police Department last week shows the officer pulling Lyoya over. There was then a struggle that included Lyoya grabbing the officer’s Taser. The officer, who was atop Lyoya as the two struggled, ultimately shot him once in the head, killing him.

The attorneys for Lyoya’s parents — civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who also represented the families of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, and Ven Johnson — have called for the officer to be fired and for him to be charged. They intend to file a civil lawsuit.

On Tuesday morning, the attorneys will hold a news conference in Detroit to discuss the findings of a private autopsy on Lyoya. That autopsy was conducted by Dr. Werner Spitz, a forensic pathologist who has also looked into the deaths of President John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr., as well as on the Casey Anthony case.

The Kent County Medical Examiner said last week that he conducted an autopsy the day Lyoya died but was awaiting toxicology and tissue test results before he could finish his report. The M.E. said the report wouldn’t be released until the police investigation of the shooting is finished.

Michigan State Police are handling the investigation, which is GRPD protocol following the use of deadly force. MSP will turn its findings over to the Kent County prosecutor, who will decide whether the shooting was justified or whether charges are warranted.

GRPD Chief Eric Winstrom told News 8 last week he is not prepared to make any decisions about the officer’s employment until he sees the MSP investigation. The officer’s name has not been released.

Demonstrations have been held much of the last week, with marchers calling for justice for Lyoya. On Monday, students at City High/Middle School in Grand Rapids walked out of class in support of that message. They chanted “no justice, no peace” and also held a moment of silence. A 15-year-old student organized the walkout.

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Funeral services for Lyoya are scheduled for Friday at Renaissance Church of God in Christ in Grand Rapids. Rev. Al Sharpton will deliver a eulogy. The National Action Network, founded by Sharpton, is helping cover funeral costs.

The funeral will be open to the public.