Prosecutor to dismiss charges against Atlanta Police officers involved in fatal shooting of Rayshard Brooks

(CNN) — A Georgia special prosecutor determined that the two Atlanta police officers involved in the fatal shooting of Rayshard Brooks in June 2020 acted reasonably and did not commit crimes.

“Both acted as reasonable officers would under the facts and circumstances of the events of that night. Both acted in accordance with well-established law and were justified in the use of force regarding the situation,” special prosecutor Peter Skandalakis said.

Officer Garrett Rolfe had been charged with felony murder, and officer Devin Brosnan had been charged with aggravated assault. Skandalakis said Tuesday he plans to file an administrative dismissal to drop the charges.

A decision is expected Tuesday in the criminal case against two Atlanta police officers charged in relation to the June 2020 shooting death of Rayshard Brooks, Georgia special prosecutor Peter Skandalakis said in a statement.

Brooks, a 27-year-old Black man, was shot and killed by officer Garrett Rolfe outside a Wendy’s restaurant after failing a sobriety test, fighting with two officers, taking a Taser from one and running away. While fleeing, Brooks turned back and appeared to aim the Taser at Rolfe, who then shot Brooks twice in the back, killing him, surveillance video shows.

Brooks’ killing — less than three weeks after the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis — sparked protests across Atlanta and beyond amid national demonstrations over police brutality and racial injustice. In Atlanta, the Wendy’s restaurant was set ablaze, hundreds blocked a major interstate, authorities fired tear gas and the police chief stepped down.

“On June 12, one of our biggest fears became our reality,” Brooks’ niece Chassidy Evans said after the shooting. “Not only did we lose another Black, unarmed male. This time it landed on our front doorstep.”

Five days after the shooting, then-Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard announced charges against Rolfe of felony murder, aggravated assault, violations of oath of office and criminal damage to property.

Howard alleged that after the shooting Rolfe kicked Brooks, and another officer involved in the encounter, Devin Brosnan, stood on top of him. An attorney for Rolfe later denied his client kicked Brooks.

Brosnan, who was placed on administrative duty after Brooks’ death, was charged with aggravated assault and violating his oath. His attorneys said Brosnan’s behavior on the night of the shooting was “exemplary.”

Rolfe’s attorney Lance LoRusso declined to comment ahead of the special prosecutor’s Tuesday afternoon press conference. CNN has left a message with Brosnan’s attorney Donald Samuel.

The swift charges came before the Georgia Bureau of Investigation completed its investigation and led to accusations that Howard — who had an ongoing campaign for another term in office — acted for political benefit.

“I think that’s ridiculous,” Howard told CNN when asked about the claim. He said the case would be his office’s 40th case charging a police officer, nine of which involved the death of someone by police.

The charges were followed by days in which a large number of Atlanta officers called out sick from work.

Howard, who campaigned on the charges in the Brooks case, ultimately lost the district attorney election to Fani Willis, who then was recused from prosecuting the case. In July 2021, State Attorney General Chris Carr appointed Skandalakis, the executive director of the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia, to oversee the case.

“I and my agency will conduct a thorough review of the facts and circumstances surrounding this case and, as with any case that comes before us, we will proceed where the evidence leads us,” Skandalakis said at the time.

Rolfe’s attorneys have previously maintained the cop was legally justified and acted in self-defense when he shot and killed Brooks. In May 2021, the Atlanta Civil Service Board ruled that Rolfe was wrongly terminated and reinstated him. The APD at the time said the board’s decision said the firing process was “not done in accordance with the Atlanta City Code” and Rolfe would remain on administrative leave until the criminal charges against him were resolved.

How the shooting unfolded

The day Brooks was shot, police were responding to the Wendy’s following reports that a man was asleep in his vehicle in the drive-thru, according to the GBI.

When Brosnan arrived, Brooks was apparently asleep behind the wheel, and Brosnan knocked on the window to wake him up. Brosnan later asked him whether he’d been drinking. Brooks told the officer he had only one drink, body-worn camera shows.

A few minutes later, Rolfe arrived on the scene and used a Breathalyzer on Brooks. As Rolfe attempted to handcuff Brooks, a struggle ensued.

Brooks struggled with the officers and grabbed Brosnan’s Taser, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. Another video filmed by a bystander begins shortly after the struggle started and shows Brooks getting a hold of the Taser and breaking free.

As Brooks ran from the officers, he turned back and appears to point the Taser at Rolfe, who unholstered his handgun and fired, shooting Brooks twice in the back.

Part of the question about the legality of the shooting was based on the potential lethality of the Taser.

Georgia law allows a person to use deadly force “only if he or she reasonably believes that such force is necessary to prevent death or great bodily injury to himself or herself or a third person.”

In addition, the Atlanta police policy manual says that an officer can use deadly force when, “He or she reasonably believes that the suspect possesses a deadly weapon or any object, device, or instrument which, when used offensively against a person, is likely to or actually does result in serious bodily injury and when he or she reasonably believes that the suspect poses an immediate threat of serious bodily injury to the officer or others.”

The Taser is designed to be less lethal than a firearm, but it can be fatal in some circumstances. Amnesty International said that more than 500 people have died in the US “after being shocked with a Taser either during their arrest or while in jail,” according to a CNN story in 2015. Although Taser, the company, said the tally of deaths directly attributed to Taser is more like 60.