June 19, 2020
Despite the Georgia Bureau of Investigation not having completed its investigation, and without presenting the evidence to the Grand Jury, the Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard charged Garrett Rolfe, the Atlanta police officer who fatally shot Rayshard Brooks last week, with 11 counts, including felony murder. If found guilty Rolfe is facing the possibility of life in prison and the death penalty.
The second officer at the scene, Devin Brosnan was charged with aggravated assault, among other lesser offenses. Brosnan’s attorney has denied that he has agreed to be a witness for the prosecution, as claimed by the DA Howard.
These rushed to judgment charges are nothing short of obeisance to those proclaiming that systemic racism exists everywhere, especially among police.
Facts and fairness be damned. Any lesser charge would have been unacceptable to the angry mobs on the left. The day after the shooting protesters set fire to the Wendy’s fast-food restaurant where the incident took place. No doubt, if anything less than a murder charge was brought against Rolfe, the city of Atlanta would be overrun with violent rioters.
Interestingly, DA Howard is in the middle of a contentious runoff election and is under criminal investigation for allegedly stealing $140,000 from Atlanta taxpayers. Could this explain why he bowed to the voices on the left with excessive charges before all of the facts are clear?
Despite those who equate this case with the killing of George Floyd, who was killed while restrained and handcuffed, the Brooks and Floyd case bear no resemblance. Further, many in the media are inaccurately depicting what occurred that night.
Brooks wasn’t just asleep in his parked car, as has been claimed. Rolfe and Brosnan were called to the scene because Brooks was passed out drunk in the drive-thru lane of a Wendy’s. The first 20-minutes of the interaction between Brooks and the officers were respectful and uneventful. However, as soon as the officers attempted to handcuff Brooks, after failing a breathalyzer test, he violently resisted, stealing Brosnan’s taser. Brosnan suffered multiple injuries while attempting to subdue Brooks, including a concussion, according to his attorney.
As Brooks attempted to flee with Rolfe in pursuit, he turned around and fired the taser at Rolfe’s head. Rolfe responded, fatally shooting Brooks twice in the back.
The claim that the killing wasn’t justified because tasers aren’t lethal is nonsensical. More than 1,000 people have died after being shocked with a taser by law enforcement, from 2000- 2017. Further, tasers are used by law enforcement because they incapacitate. A taser emits 50,000 volts of electricity. If it had connected with Rolfe, Brooks could have taken his gun, as he did with the taser. Not to mention under Georgia law, a taser is considered a deadly weapon.
Despite Brook’s physically attacking the officers, stealing, and then firing a taser at them, incredibly DA Howard has asserted that Brooks “never presented a threat” to the officers.
Ironically, just last week DA Howard stated that “a taser is considered a deadly weapon by Georgia law.” This was after Howard announced criminal charges against six Atlanta police officers for aggressively pulling two people out of a car, shocking them with tasers during the rioting. Not incidentally, five of the six officers are black.
Further, Rolfe’s attorneys said he reacted after he thought he “heard a gunshot and saw a flash in front of him”. In the split-second decision made by Rolfe after Brooks fired the taser, it’s not improbable that Rolfe beloved that a gun was being fired at him.
Moreover, just last year a Georgia DA cleared police officer Officer Eduardo Guerrero of all charges after he shot David Schmitt. Schmitt, like Brooks, fought with the officer, stole his taser, and then attempted to use it on the officer. Guerrero shot Schmitt multiple times. The DA found the shooting “legally justified.” Why was the law different last year? Schmitt, who survived the incident, is white.
The narrative being spun is that Brooks was a good family man, murdered by police. Not mentioned by the media is Brooks’ criminal history. In 2014 Brooks was convicted of false imprisonment, credit card fraud, family battery, and felony cruelty to children.
These past crimes do not justify Brooks’ killing. However, they may have factored into Rolfe’s state of mind, contributing to his fear that his life was endangered. More than likely officers Rolfe and Brosnan ran Brooks’ license and consequently may have perceived him to be potentially dangerous.
Many are claiming that the officers should have just let Brooks walk home after failing the sobriety test. So, are drunk driving laws not to be enforced any longer? Or just not for black men?
And if the officers had let Brooks go what would have stopped him from returning to the Wendy’s parking lot to retrieve his car? Suppose he subsequently hit someone with his car? Who would bear the blame?
The DA made a stunning claim against both officers. He asserted that Rolfe kicked Brooks after he was shot and that Brosnan sat on his arm. Through their attorneys, both men vehemently denied these allegations. In an interview with Fox News. Rolfe’s attorney stated –
“If there was a video of my client kicking Mr. Brooks, you would have seen it. (Howard) shows a still, and one leg is planted and the other one’s bent. He could be leaning down to try to give him first aid. It could have been when he was trying to evaluate whether he needed handcuffs.”
Brosnan’s team also denied the DA’s claims, saying Brosnan put his foot on Brooks’ arm to ensure he did not access the Taser, not out of malicious intent.
Not mentioned by the DA is that Rolfe performed CPR on Brooks, and pleaded with him to breathe. Apparently, these actions don’t comport with the narrative that the DA and those on the left are attempting to shape- that Rolfe and Brosnan acted out of racial animus.
Police officers everywhere will understand the message sent by what is happening in Atlanta. Anytime an officer uses any force, whether warranted or not, they will no longer be afforded a presumption of innocence- if the suspect is black. They can expect to be condemned in the media, and have their lives turned upside down or destroyed, as in the case of officer Rolfe.
In response to the charges pressed against officers Rolfe and Brosnan the Atlanta police department, which is 58% black, is reporting a significant number of officers calling out sick. Even the Democratic mayor has admitted that morale in the Atlanta police department is “down ten-fold”. According to CNN, “Atlanta police officers are not responding to calls in three of the departments six zones.”
Democrats claim they want a police-less society, they deserve to get what they wish.
