New protests erupt after officer-involved shooting of black man
Atlanta mayor decries incident while investigation moves forward - NBC's Jennifer Johnson reports
ATLANTA, Ga. (KYMA, KECY/NBC News) - Less than a week after George Floyd was laid to rest, demonstrators are taking to the streets again to protest the shooting of another black man by police.
New protests, and a Wendy's set on fire, after an Atlanta police officer allegedly shot and killed a black man in the fast food restaurant's parking lot. 27-year-old RayShard Brooks was found sleeping in his car in the Wendy's drive-thru, then failed a sobriety test.
"Alright, I think you've had too much to drink to be driving so put your hands behind your back for me?" an officer is heard saying on police body cam video.
The same body cam footage shows Brooks resisting arrest. A struggle follows. The cruiser dash cam shows Brooks grabbing the officer's taser, then running away. The next sound heard is gunshots.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) has reviewed the officers video to determine what caused him to fire his gun.
"It appears to the eye that he points the taser at the Atlanta officer." said Vic Reynolds, the Director of the George Bureau of Investigation.
Officer Garrett Rolfe has been fired. Officer Devin Brosnan placed on administrative duty. Atlanta's Police Chief, Erika Shields, has resigned.
Meanwhile demands for police reform grow louder while Congress looks for a compromise.
"Is there a path forward that we can take to look at the necessity of bad behavior within our law enforcement community? Is there a path forward? I think we'll find that." said Senator Tim Scott (R-Georgia).
Atlanta's mayor has convened a new committee to examine the use of force by police.
"There's a legitimacy to this anger, there's a legitimacy to this outrage." said former Georgia State lawmakerStacey Abrams.
It's an outrage already felt in Atlanta and across the country after the deaths of jogger Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and others. Protesters want change and say they will not stop until it happens.
