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Former officer found not guilty in deadly shooting
A Fulton County jury found a former Atlanta police officer not guilty in a deadly shooting. Prosecutors alleged Oliver Simmonds, who was part of former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms security detail, shot and killed a teenager who was stealing his unmarked police car.
ATLANTA - A Fulton County jury has found Officer Oliver Simmonds not guilty in the deadly shooting of an alleged carjacking suspect in 2019. The verdict came down just four hours after deliberations began.
Simmonds embraced his attorney and breathed a sigh of relief in response to the not guilty verdicts read in open court.
Prosecutors from Fulton County alleged that Officer Oliver Simmonds, who was off-duty at the time, shot and killed 18-year-old D'Ettrick Griffin, who was pumping gas at a Shell station near the intersection of McDaniel and Whitehall streets on July 15, 2019.
During the trial, fellow officers who arrived at the scene testified. The prosecution attempted to paint Simmonds as "judge, jury, and executioner."
Police said Griffin slid into the officer's unmarked cruiser and sped away, but not before Simmonds shot the teen. His attorney, Jackie Patterson, said the officer feared for his life.
"The law says if your life is in danger, and you really believe you are about to be shot or killed, you have a right to kill that person," said Patterson.
Prosecutors said Simmonds lied and claimed his feet were injured. They said Griffin was not armed and was fleeing after stealing a car.
"That man was not in fear for anybody's life. He just needed to get his car back because he was embarrassed," said Fulton County Chief Assistant District Attorney Sau Chan.
RELATED: Ex-Atlanta police officer, Oliver Simmonds, on trial for deadly gas station shooting
Oliver Simmonds stands trial for the murder of 18-year-old D'Ettrick Griffin in Fulton County Superior Court on Sept. 18, 2024. (FOX 5)
Both sides believed the law was on their side.
"Don't be misled when she says he shot him in the back. The law doesn't care where he shot him. The law cares that Mr. Griffin put his life in danger and that he had no choice but to use deadly force," Chan said.
"Justice for Mr. Dietrich Griffin was for him to be able to live to face his consequences and be able to sit at this table and face his consequences of a car theft not be six feet under," Patterson argued.
"That man was not in fear for anybody's life. He just needed to get his car back because he was embarrassed," Chan exclaimed.
Ultimately, the jury sided with Simmonds, finding him not guilty.
"I am righteous right now. It's been a long time," Simmonds told FOX 5’s Aungelique Proctor following the trial. "I am innocent."
"We are fortunate and grateful that the jury realized my client used self-defense. He did not want to shoot the teen, but he had no choice," Patterson explained.
At the time of the shooting, Simmonds was assigned to the Executive Protection Unit responsible for safeguarding then-Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms. He retired in 2022.
The Fulton County District Attorney's office did not provided a comment after the verdict.