Manuel 'Tortuguita' Teran's family files lawsuit over activist's killing

ATLANTA - The family of an environmental  shot and killed by law enforcement during a clearing operation near the site of a future Atlanta Public Safety Training Center has filed a federal lawsuit against multiple officers, alleging civil rights violations.

Manuel Esteban Paez Terán, who went by the name Tortuguita, was killed on Jan. 18, 2023, during a law enforcement raid at Intrenchment Creek Park in DeKalb County. Terán had been camping as part of a protest against the training facility, dubbed "Cop City" by opponents. The incident sparked widespread outrage and international attention.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Atlanta by Paez Terán’s parents, Joel Paez and Belkis Terán, names a Georgia Bureau of Investigation special agent and two Georgia State Patrol troopers as defendants. The suit alleges violations of the First and Fourth Amendments, including excessive force, unlawful arrest, and retaliation against political speech.

"This was a public forest, not the site of the construction," said Jeff Filipovits, an attorney for the family. "They went in there and they cleared it out. No warning — you’re under arrest. So that, to us, is unacceptable."

Manuel 'Tortuguita' Teran remembered: Vigil for 'Stop Cop City' protester killed in 'clearing operation'

Paez Terán’s family and attorneys announced the lawsuit Tuesday during a press conference in downtown Decatur, describing the events surrounding the activist’s death as a tragedy fueled by flawed planning and excessive police force.

"Our goal is to get the information to the family to understand what happened and if someone is responsible for setting off this catastrophic series of events, to hold them liable," Filipovits said.

Belkis Terán, Manuel’s mother, said her child was shot "13, no 14 times with bullets by police." An independent autopsy funded by the family previously concluded that Terán had their hands raised when they were shot. Law enforcement, however, maintains that Terán fired first, wounding a trooper.

The Stone Mountain Circuit District Attorney’s Office announced in October 2023 that the six state troopers involved in the shooting would not face charges, concluding that their use of deadly force was "objectively reasonable under the circumstances of the case." Prosecutors said the officers "did not act with any criminal intent" and that issuing a warning prior to firing was "not feasible."

The family disputes those findings and continues to demand an independent investigation, arguing that the incident remains shrouded in secrecy. They allege Terán’s killing was part of a broader effort to suppress opposition to the training center.

"Forest defenders are not terrorists. My son was against environmental injustice," said Joel Paez, Terán’s father. "I must live my life looking for justice against any system of power that planned, perpetrated, and covered up Manuel’s death."

The lawsuit claims Special Agent Long targeted protesters because of their political beliefs and ordered arrests on public land where camping was legal. Troopers Lamb and Myers, the suit alleges, unlawfully arrested Terán and used excessive force by firing pepper balls into their tent.

"Why did this happen to my child?" Belkis Terán asked. "This violence is happening to a community. This destruction is happening to our rights."

Attorney Brian Spears said the family filed the lawsuit to uncover the truth.

"Despite the family’s prayers, no independent investigation was ever conducted," Spears said. "The GBI controlled the investigation and refused — even to this day — to release the results."

The lawsuit does not target the officers who discharged their weapons, with Filipovits explaining they were also placed in a dangerous situation due to the raid’s flawed planning.

"They were placed in a terrible position, just as Manuel was," Filipovits said.

Different stories over Tortuguita's death

Investigators say Tortuguita opened fire with a handgun he had purchased when officers approached his tent, striking the trooper in the "pelvic area." The trooper was wearing a bullet-proof vest and survived.

Troopers then opened fire, shooting Paez Teran several times. The official autopsy conducted by the DeKalb County Medical Examiner’s Office said Teran was shot 13 times by multiple different guns.

Protestors and Tortuguita's family have questioned claims that the activist fired first, saying that their independent autopsy showed their hands were raised, and they were facing multiple troopers during the time of the shooting.

According to the lawyers, the private autopsy revealed that Tortuguita had been shot 14 separate times in various locations, including the head through their right eye, left upper chest, abdomen, arms and legs. The wounds indicated that their arm and hand were raised with the palm facing forward during the shooting, the attorneys said.

The DeKalb County Medical Examiner's autopsy showed no gunpowder residue on the activist's hands. An analysis by the GBI crime lab disputed that report, saying that its findings "revealed the presence of particles characteristic of gunshot primer residue."

The DeKalb autopsy also said that Tortuguita's body had at least 57 gunshot wounds to their head, torso, and extremities, including the hands and right foot. The cause of death was ruled to be multiple gunshot wounds.

During the processing of the scene, officials say they found a Smith and Wesson 9 m.m. handgun and magazines with ammunition that were later determined to have been purchased by Tortuguita from a sporting goods store in Acworth in 2020. 

Who was Manuel Paez Teran aka Tortugita?

Belkin Teran, describes her child as a scholar and environmentalist who was an intellectual and had good manners.

The protester's mother says he was very active in several international environmental programs and was there to defend the forest.

Paez described his child as someone who was also caring for others, including those who were indigent or homeless. 

"Manuel was the one who would stop in the middle of the street and give $100 to a needy person," he said.

Paez Teran was one of dozens of activists who had been occupying the site in tents and tree houses to stop the construction of the training center because they believe the forest space is critical – and the training center will further what they call cops’ "urban warfare tactics" toward the public.

Debate around the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center  

Protests against the training center have been ongoing for more than two years.

Atlanta Mayor Dickens and other supporters say the 85-acre, $90 million facility would replace inadequate training facilities and would help address difficulties in hiring and retaining police officers. Opponents have expressed concern that it could lead to greater police militarization and that its construction in the South River Forest will worsen environmental damage in a poor, majority-Black area.

Despite various attacks against the site and contractors’ equipment over the past couple of years, construction on the training center has continued. Supporters say the city must replace outdated facilities and that it is key to better train officers to avoid improper use of force.

The city says the issues caused by protesters have raised the cost of the training center by about $20 million.  An additional $1.7 million may be spent to improve security around the site.

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