Atlanta's police chief has resigned following the officer-involved fatal shooting of Rayshard Brooks on Friday.
Brooks, a 27-year-old African-American man, was shot by an Atlanta Police Department officer at a local Wendy's restaurant. The incident is currently being reviewed by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Per BBC News, police chief Erika Shields handed in her resignation on Saturday.
Sheild's resignation was announced by Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms.
Bottoms said in a statement:
"Because of her desire that Atlanta be a model of what meaningful reform should look like across this country, Chief Shields has offered to immediately step aside as police chief so that the city may move forward with urgency and rebuilding the trust so desperately needed throughout our communities."
Shields was appointed the Atlanta police chief in December of 2016. Prior to this, she had served a long career in the force.
Interim Corrections Chief Rodney Bryant will be serving as interim police chief until a permanent replacement is appointed.
Earlier today it was revealed that one APD officer had been fired and another has been reassigned following the shooting.
Bodycam footage of Brooks' arrest can be seen below (Warning - some people will find the video distressing):The fired officer under investigation has been identified as Garrett Rolfe, who had been with the Atlanta Police Department since 2013, WSB-TV of Atlanta reported.
The Daily Mail reports that Rolfe is the officer that opened fire and fatally shot Brooks.
A police spokesperson has also identified the second officer as Devin Bronsan, who has since been placed on administrative duty. The Associated Press states that Bronsan has been with the department since 2018.
Rolfe and Bronsan were the responding officers to a call on Friday night after it was reported that Brooks had fallen asleep in his car at a Wendy's restaurant drive-thru.
According to the GBI press release:
"Preliminary information indicates that at approximately 10:33 pm, APD was dispatched to the Wendy’s located at 125 University Ave, Atlanta, GA. Officers were responding to a complaint of a male in a vehicle parked in the drive-thru asleep, causing other customers to drive around the vehicle."
The report explains that after Brooks failed a field sobriety test, "officers attempted to place the male subject into custody".
A breaking news report on the shooting can be seen below:However, Brooks then resisted the arrest and a "struggle ensued". The struggle was captured on cell phone footage by witnesses, as well as by the officer's bodycams and nearby security cameras.
Witnesses claim that Brooks became in possession of a taser. The GBI report confirms this, stating:
"It has also been reported that the male subject was shot by an officer in the struggle over the Taser."
Footage showing the incident unfold was shared by TMZ, and shows Brooks being shot three times while fleeing from the scene.
Brooks was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead following surgery.
Brooks' death has resulted in further outbreaks of protests and violence in the Atlanta area. Last night, the Wendy's restaurant where the shooting took place was set on fire by protesters.
Footage of the engulfed Wendy's can be seen below:Rayshard Brooks' sister-in-law, Crystal Brooks, was one of those gathered outside the Wendy's restaurant on Saturday. She told local news crews:
"He wasn’t causing anyone any harm. The police went up to the car and even though the car was parked they pulled him out of the car and started tussling with him."
Per Fox News, L. Chris Stewart, the attorney for Brooks' family has said that the officer who shot the 27-year-old should be charged for "an unjustified use of deadly force, which equals murder".
Stewart added: "You can’t have it both ways in law enforcement. You can’t say a Taser is a nonlethal weapon [...] but when an African American grabs it and runs with it, now it’s some kind of deadly, lethal weapon that calls for you to unload on somebody."