The anger after George Floyd's death had barely subsided when a new drama revived it. Friday night, Rayshard Brooks, a 27-year-old African American, was killed by a white police officer in Atlanta as he tried to escape after he managed to get a taser from the police. The dismissal of the agent and the resignation of the city police chief on Sunday did not calm the protesters, who took to the streets again on Monday. The prosecutor, for his part, is expected to announce the charges against the agent on Wednesday.
What happened ?
At 10:33 pm, Friday evening, an employee of the fast-food Wendy's calls the police because a sleeping man at the wheel partially blocks the drive-in of the restaurant. When a first agent arrives, Rayshard Brooks seems confused and explains that a friend dropped him off. The policeman indicates that he smells of alcohol. A second officer arrives and gives Brooks a sobriety test. For about 25 minutes, the confrontation takes place in calm - the police even exchange jokes with the young man.
He suggested that the agents leave his car in the parking lot and walk back to his sister's house. Brooks, who claims to have drunk only one margarita, then agrees to breathe in the breathalyzer. Which displays 1.08 g / L, a rate higher than the legal limit in Georgia (0.8 g / L). Officer Garrett Rolfe tells him he's "drunk too much" and tries to handcuff him. This is where everything changes.
Rayshard Brooks struggles and struggles with the two police officers on the ground. He manages to grab the other officer's taser and then runs away. Officer Rolfe pursues him. Brooks turns and tries to unload the taser on the policeman but misses him and keeps running. The officer then took out his service weapon and then fired three times. Rayshard Brooks collapses. An ambulance arrived a few minutes later, but the young man died on the operating table in the hospital. According to the autopsy report, he died of two bullets in the back.
What consequences in Atlanta?
In this predominantly black city in the south of the United States (54% of the population is African-American), the drama rekindled the tensions that had followed the death of George Floyd. During the weekend, the demonstrations were marked by violence, and the Wendy's restaurant was burnt down. A total of fifty people were arrested.
City mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, who is a favorite with Kamala Harris and Stacey Abrams as potential running mate for Joe Biden, immediately reacted. She announced on Saturday the "immediate" resignation of Erika Shields, who has been head of the Atlanta police for over 20 years.
What legal consequences?
Employed by the Atlanta police since 2013, Garrett Rolfe was immediately dismissed. Prosecutor Paul Howard, who visited the victim's widow on Monday, is expected to announce which charge he has charged on Wednesday. According to him, this could range from manslaughter, punishable by 10 years in prison, to murder, punishable by life.
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