Yesterday, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation confirmed in a press release that they were investigating the death of Rayshard Brooks - a 27-year-old African-American man who was shot and killed by Atlanta police at a local Wendy's restaurant on Friday evening.
Today, Fox News has reported that one APD officer has been fired and another has been reassigned following the incident.
Bodycam footage of the incident 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. In a statement to the Associated Press, 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 and a "struggle ensued". The struggle was captured on cell phone footage by witnesses.
Witnesses claim that Brooks became in possession of a taser. The GBI report continues: "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, with the Wendy's restaurant where the shooting took place being set on fire last night.
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 said:
"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 47-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."
Yesterday, Atlanta's police chief, Erika Shields, also stepped down from her position in connection with the shooting. Interim Corrections Chief Rodney Bryant will be serving as interim police chief until a permanent replacement is appointed.
