Atlanta’s district attorney made things very difficult for himself by referring charges just days after the shooting, without bothering to wait for, you know, the investigation. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation tweeted that they were not made away of DA Paul Howard’s press conference, on the charges, and will continue to work to complete the full investigation. There’s zero possibility Howard has the full details, he’s responding to the mob
Officer charged with murder for shooting Rayshard Brooks
Prosecutors brought murder charges Wednesday against the white Atlanta police officer who shot Rayshard Brooks in the back, saying that Brooks was not a deadly threat and that the officer kicked the wounded black man and offered no medical treatment for over two minutes as he lay dying on the ground.
Brooks, 27, was holding a stun gun he had snatched from officers, and he fired it at them during the clash, but he was running away at the time and was 18 feet, 3 inches from Officer Garrett Rolfe when Rolfe started shooting, District Attorney Paul Howard said in announcing the charges. Stun guns have a range of around 15 feet.
The felony murder charge against Rolfe, 27, carries life in prison or the death penalty, if prosecutors decide to seek it. He was also charged with 10 other offenses punishable by decades behind bars.
A second officer, Devin Brosnan, 26, stood on Brooks’ shoulder as he struggled for his life, Howard said. Brosnan was charged with aggravated assault and violating his oath.
While the link is WRAL, it is an Associated Press article. It was not a stun gun. It was a taser. A police issue one. Something you cannot buy off the shelf.
Ahead of the district attorney’s announcement, Rolfe’s lawyers issued a statement saying the officer feared for his safety and that of others around him and was justified in shooting Brooks. Rolfe opened fire after hearing a sound “like a gunshot and saw a flash in front of him,†apparently from the stun gun.
“Mr. Brooks violently attacked two officers and disarmed one of them. When Mr. Brooks turned and pointed an object at Officer Rolfe, any officer would have reasonably believed that he intended to disarm, disable or seriously injure him,†the lawyers said.
But the district attorney said the stun gun that Brooks held had already been fired twice and was thus empty and no longer a threat.
That is an important point. Did the officers know that it was empty? Because
Just two weeks ago, the same DA in the Rayshard Brooks case charged officers with aggravated assault for using a taser on protesters
"A taser is considered a deadly weapon under Georgia law"https://t.co/OHYzPQMCJk
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) June 17, 2020
So, if a taser is considered a deadly weapon, than Rolfe was allowed to use deadly force. So, there’s a good chance a jury finds him not guilty.
He’s also charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, will probably get off on that one. Aggravated assault for kicking Brooks when down, which the defense will argue was done under Atlanta police guidelines, checking on the perp and attempting to keep distance. Four counts of violation of oath, three aggravated assault charges for his 3rd shot striking a civilian vehicle with 3 people in it, and one count of criminal property damage in the first for hitting the car with the bullet. Many, many lawyers are calling this a huge prosecutorial over-reach.
Howard is probably trying to make a splash before election time, because he is under investigation for illegally funneling money to his own paycheck. Neither officer would see a trial for years, long after the election.
Meanwhile, as the morale of Atlanta police officers hits bottom, lots and lots have resigned. And lots and lots walked out in a Blue Flu yesterday, especially at night after the DA’s announcement.
https://twitter.com/toddstarnes/status/1273420360432656386
I’m not sure why all the cop haters and those who want to defund the cops were complaining. This is what they wanted, right? No cops.
When Democratic politicians side with the criminals and the woke against the police, I can see why the police would feel the way they do. As it turns out, the rumors of the Atlanta Police department’s job action were greatly exaggerated, but I would absolutely support it if the entire f(ornicating) department stood down for a
whileday. Let the left know just what would happen without the police in a major city. Let the criminal element rob, rape, murder and pillage and see what happens.Whaaa? Democrat politicians have always sided with the criminals from the traitors of the Confederacy in 1861 to the thugs of the KKK to the lynch mobs to Black Lives Matter and Antifa thugs. This is nothing new. The Democrats suffer from systemic criminality.
I defy anybody to name a program or group the Democrats currently support that is pro American or patriotic in any way.
https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uNG4XWwpheA/XulTumety6I/AAAAAAACUdo/sBsM_8v_W_I0ZGiNUyJ2S1GDt3twPfHEgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/1%2B1%2B1%2B1%2B1%2B2a90e333e5e5ab5bf6fcd3a53_f8aa5f5d_540.jpg
Years ago, I was gearing up a team to go into Iraq. At the first meeting with the team, the only question on their minds was, “who’s side was I on”? They wanted to know if I had their back when the shooting started, or if I was just in it to protect my own career and would throw them to the wolves if anything questionable happened.
It is a terrible thing to go into harm’s way and not know if the people you depend on will throw you under the bus the first chance they get.
A Wendy’s burned that night but watch all of Atlanta bun when this guy gets acquitted.
Of course, this almost guarantees that he will be convicted. Another sacrificial lamb for the woke gods.