Over Friday (June 12), the US was rocked by the death of 27-year-old Rayshard Brooks, who was killed after being shot by police officers in Atlanta while attempting to flee an arrest.
Per an official press release from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, APD officers Garrett Rolfe and Devin Bronsan were responding to a complaint that Brooks has fallen asleep in his vehicle in a Wendy's drive-thru, "causing other customers to drive around the vehicle."
It is then reported that after Brooks failed a field sobriety test, the officers "attempted to place the male subject into custody". However, Brooks resisted and attempted to flee. A struggle between the three individuals then ensued.
Bodycam footage of Brooks' arrest can be seen below (Warning - some people will find the video distressing):The GBI states that, during the struggle, "Brooks obtained one of the officer's Tasers and began to flee from the scene.
"Officers pursued Brooks on foot and during the chase, Brooks turned and pointed the Taser at the officer. The officer fired his weapon, striking Brooks."
Brooks' death sparked a fresh wave of protests in the city and across the US, with many stating that his killing was an injustice.
However, Burke County Sheriff Alfonzo Williams - who has taught thousands of police officers about the use of force over his career spanning decades in Georgia - has spoken out about the incident, calling it a "justified shooting".
Williams' full interview with CNN can be seen below:Speaking to told CNN in an interview last night, Williams broke down the footage from the shooting, saying:
"We saw in the video that Brooks is engaged in a fight with the officers
"They were on the ground and we know that when we’re on the ground we have a very high likelihood of being hurt or killed. This is not the place we want to be. This is not a wrestling match.
"Brooks is able to take a nonlethal weapon, a Taser, away from one of the officers, and he flees.
"They give chase. He’s committed two felonies to obstruction of an officer counts and he needs to be held accountable. So they were perfectly justified in running behind Brooks to capture him. Brooks turned back to the officers and fired the Taser."
Williams then explained the effects a taser has on the body, and stated that he believes the shooting was "justified". He added:
"If an officer is hit with that Taser, all of his muscles will be locked up, and he’ll have the inability to move and to respond, and yet he is still responsible for every weapon on his belt.
"If that officer is hit he still has the firearm on his side and the likelihood of him being stomped in the head or having his firearm taken was a probability and he did what he needed to do.
"This was a completely justified shooting."
The County Sheriff then added that he is disappointed that officer Garrett Rolfe was fired and not supported by the community, and said that his "political" firing sends the wrong message to "black youths".
Williams said: "It’s political. It’s senseless and we’re sending the wrong message to our black youth.
"We’re telling them that it’s OK to run from the police, take a weapon from the police, they can fight with the police, they can point a weapon at police and expect nothing to happen."
On Sunday, an autopsy listed Brooks' cause of death as gunshot wounds to the back and the manner of death has been listed as homicide.
The report adds that Brooks died from organ damage and blood loss from the two gunshot wounds, CNN reports.
Over the weekend it was revealed that one APD officer had been fired and another has been reassigned following the shooting.
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 reports. The Daily Mail states 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.
CNN reports that the Fulton County District Attorney has criticized the officers' handling of Brooks' fatal shooting and said that a decision on whether to bring charges should come around Wednesday.
"[Brooks] did not seem to present any kind of threat to anyone, and so the fact that it would escalate to his death just seems unreasonable," DA Paul Howard told CNN's Fredricka Whitfield on Sunday. He added:
"It just seems like this is not the kind of conversation and incident that should have led to someone's death."
Brooks' death has resulted in fresh outbreaks of protests and violence in the Atlanta area.
On Saturday night, the Wendy's restaurant where the shooting took place was torched 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 night. 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."
On Saturday, Atlanta police chief Erika Shields handed in her resignation as a result of the incident, BBC News reports.
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.
