Atlanta police officers involved in Rayshard Brooks' arrest, death sue city
Officer Garrett Rolfe, who fired the fatal shots (left), and officer Devin Brosnan (right).
ATLANTA - Two Atlanta Police Department officers involved in the deadly shooting of Rayshard Brooks in 2020 are suing the city of Atlanta and former city officials for the violations of their constitutional rights and false arrest.
The Atlanta Police Department first fired Garrett Rolfe, then later reinstated him with back pay. He's charged with murder and is currently on administrative leave pending the outcome of his trial.
Authorities charged Officer Devin Brosnan with aggravated assault and violation of oath of office.
Both lawsuits are seeking unspecified monetary damages.
TIMELINE: DEATH OF RAYSHARD BROOKS, PROTESTS, OFFICERS' LEGAL FALLOUT
"It will be a hard battle," Attorney Lance J. LoRusso said in a statement. "Please send prayers and positive thoughts for justice to prevail."
The lawsuit was announced two days shy of the two-year anniversary of Brooks' death.
Rayshard Brooks was celebrating his daughter’s birthday at an arcade on June 12, 2020, hours before he was killed in the parking lot of an Atlanta Wendy’s.
Video captured Brooks evading arrest after allegedly taking a Taser from an officer, who was attempting to arrest him following a sobriety test.
The shooting came at a time of heightened tension over police brutality and calls for reforms across the U.S. following the May 25 death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Atlanta saw large crowds of protesters the morning after Brooks' shooting.
The Atlanta Civil Service Board ordered the officer charged in Brooks' death, Garrett Rolfe, to be reinstated by the Atlanta Police Department.
A judge ruled Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is "disqualified" from prosecuting the Rayshard Brooks case after Willis requested to be recused from prosecuting Rolfe.