‘I’m sick to my stomach’: Anger as prosecutor dismisses charges against Atlanta officers in Rayshard Brooks shooting
The charges against the officers involved in the fatal shooting of Rayshard Brooks in Atlanta, Georgia in June 2020 have been dropped, prompting outrage.
Special prosecutor Pete Skandalakis said on Tuesday that it was “reasonable” for Officer Garrett Rolfe to deadly force at the shooting which took place at a Wendy’s fast food restaurant, 11alive reported.
Mr Skandalakis said Mr Rolfe and Officer Devin Brosnan “acted within the scope of their duties”. The prosecutor said that when they started to detain Mr Books on suspicion of DUI, they had “no idea” it would lead to a struggle and the killing of Mr Brooks.
The officers “committed no crimes” and “acted as reasonable officers,” according to Mr Skandalakis. He said he would “file in Fulton County an administrative dismissal in which we will be dismissing all the warrants”.
Former Gwinnett County District Attorney, Danny Porter, a consultant for Mr Skandalakis’s office in this case, confirmed that all analysts had been white, according to 11alive.
Mr Skandalakis said he didn’t think race was a factor in the shooting of a Black man by two white officers.
He said video and audio evidence “speak for themselves”.
Georgia NAACP president Gerald Griggs told 11alive that “we need to present this case to a grand jury because only the citizens of Fulton County should determine if this case should proceed forward”.
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