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Nearly 4 years after deadly shooting, family celebrates murder charges for former Atlanta police officer
The family of Jimmy Atchison reacted to the indictment of an officer, who shot and killed the man during an FBI raid in 2019.
ATLANTA - Jimmy Atchison's family and loved ones demonstrated outside the Fulton County courthouse demanding justice for the man killed by a former Atlanta Police Department officer in 2019.
Fulton County prosecutors indicted Sung Kim in the fatal shooting of 21-year-old Atchison during a federal raid of a northwest Atlanta apartment. Kim faces involuntary manslaughter, violation of oath of office and murder charges nearly four years after the murder.
Investigators said Kim killed Atchison as he hid in a closet during the raid.
Georgia NAACP President Gerald Griggs said Atlanta has a "police brutality problem," and said he believes there would not have been an indictment without persistence from Atchison's loved ones.
"Let's be clear, this shooting should never have happened and it should not have taken three and half years to get to this point," Griggs said. "Because of the perseverance of his family … we are here."
Family and loved ones of Jimmy Atchison demonstrate outside the Fulton County courthouse on Dec. 19, 2022.
Jimmy Atchison's father said his family has struggled emotionally since his son's death.
"Police brutality is a detriment to society and the shooting needs to be punished," he said.
Attorneys for Jimmy Atchison's family filed a multi-million dollar wrongful death lawsuit against the city.
Who is former Atlanta police officer Sung Kim?
Sung Kim (Atlanta Police Department)
Kim was a 26-year veteran of the Atlanta Police Department. He retired from APD in October 2019.
He was working with a federal task force in January 2019 when he shot Atchison.
Who was Jimmy Atchison?
Atchison was 21 years old when he died. NAACP President Gerald Griggs called him a "son of southwest Atlanta."
Family claims Atchison was unarmed and surrendering when he was shot as the task served a robbery warrant.
Atchison’s death caused the Atlanta Police Department to re-evaluate its role on federal task forces as the federal policy clashes with the department’s policy on body-worn cameras. All APD officers are required to wear body cameras while on duty.