Rolfe, the officer that killed Brooks, also does not have an unblemished record. Among other things, he received a written reprimand for use of force involving a firearm in 2017.
I suspect more information on both Rolfe and Brooks will be forthcoming.
A DUI is a felony.
In my state your 3rd DUI in some time period is a felony, your first/second/third if it’s been a while is a misdemeanor.
In Georgia it is generally a misdemeanor, though can be upgraded to a felony.
Source: https://law.justia.com/codes/georgia/2010/title-17/chapter-4/article-2/17-4-20/
I’d add that there are also restrictions on when an officer can use a taser – I don’t know specifically what those are in Georgia, but there were several officers charged criminally for use of excessive force for tasing protesters during protests over Memorial Day weekend. See https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/2-more-atlanta-police-officers-fired-over-use-force-during-n1229656 (includes video). So it’s possible that part of equation may be that the officers overstepped their bounds by using a taser in the first place, thereby creating a situation where Brooks could wrest control of the taser away from them.
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The 2 students who were tazed in downtown Atlanta a few weeks ago were leaving a protest in their car. It was, IIRC, 8:13pm (still light out) and the city had just announced an 8 pm curfew. Not sure if these students knew about the curfew or not. They were trying to get home and were caught in traffic. IIRC, their vehicle was at a stop because of traffic. The officers broke the car side window, pulled the students out who were putting up no resistence, and tased them. Quite a different scenario.
I think your framing of the issue raises all sorts of issues about tasers. In this particular instance, since tasers have a limited range, was Rolfe justified in using a gun to kill as a response to a failed use of a taser by Brooks? This article suggests tasers are only reliable up to 10 feet:
https://www.nytimes.com/article/police-tasers.html
**Since the police officer knew he could avoid the taser by keeping a short distance from Brooks, was he then justified in fearing likely serious bodily injury to himself? Was firing his gun 3 times at Brooks a necessary, or even reasonable, response? **
It appeared to me that the officer closest to Brooks was chasing with his own taser, thereby needing to be within a distance that he could use it.
It was the officer who was further away that shot Brooks, right?
I don’t think so. Based on reports and footage, Rolfe was the closer officer chasing after Brooks and then shooting him.
Letting a violent domestic abuser scamper off with a taser sounds unwise.
I think once an officer fires the training is to keep firing until the person stops/is down. 3 shots might not be enough, might be more than enough. Firing at a moving target at night you don’t expect high accuracy.
It’s not factually accurate to claim Tasers are limited to 10ft. Depending on the exact model of the Taser and the Taser cartridge, the range can be up to 30ft.
The only info I could find says that tasers use an air cartridge to propel the probes, and that the cartridge must be replaced after firing the taser.
The video appears to show Brooks actually firing the taser, not just aiming, at which point the officer drew his weapon and fired 3 times, hitting Brooks twice.
If this is how that particular taser works, seems like the case would hinge upon whether the officer could/should have known the taser was spent, rendering Brooks without a lethal weapon.
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No, that is not how it appears to me. Looks to me like the officer closest to Brooks is firing his taser at Brooks, when Brooks turns and fires his taser, at which time the same officer pulls his gun and fires at Brooks.
By this time, the second officer is back on his feet and runs over, but does not pull his weapon.
You fail to mention that Mr. Rolfe had prior disciplinary investigations which which included civilian complaints and use of force. Hmmmm…
Personally, I think that letting a violent police officer scamper around with a taser and a gun sounds unwise.
In my opinion the police did everything right until he fired his service revolver. At that point Mr. Brooks was not a threat to the officers are the general public. Heck I am not sure he could have run more than 200 yards. As a policeman you only have a few seconds to make a decision that could alter your life. 99% of the time the cops are going to charge you with a DUI if your in the car and the car is running (I believe the car was running in this case). Fighting the cops is never a good move unless your prepared to accept the results of your actions. Even having said this a man should not lose his life over a DUI or $20 fake bill. Deadly force should only be used as a last resort.
I think we can all agree the way Rayshard Brooks acted towards the cops was vile and disgusting. There was absolutely no justification for him to physically attack those police officers and fire a Taser at one of them.
Yes, he should not have responded the way he did but obviously drunk people are not rational a lot of the time.
Watching the videos of the situation, I do think that one area, among others, that the police could have handled better was the communication level when they chose to cuff him, in terms of using language in an attempt to keep the situation de-escalated.
Based on circumstances that did not apply in this case (see https://www.healanlaw.com/blog/2017/10/3-factors-that-make-a-dui-a-felony-in-georgia/ for examples).
This causes a deja vu for me. A few months ago I called a 911 because I saw a men who was asleep or unconscious at the wheel while we both were stopped at a traffic light. I though they’d check if he was OK and maybe he’d get in trouble if he was drunk or stoned, but it never crossed my mind that anything worse could happen. Of course he was white. If this kind of thing ever happens again with a black guy, I don’t know what to do. What if he’s shot and I’m branded racist? Or what if he has a medical emergency and will die if I don’t call?
Or wakes up and continues driving an injures or kills others?