No charges for Georgia State troopers who killed activist at Atlanta Public Safety Training Center site

DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. - A special prosecutor will not charge the six Georgia State Patrol troopers who shot and killed an environmental protestor at the proposed site for the controversial Atlanta Public Safety Training Center.

Manuel Esteban Paez Terán, who went by "Tortuguita" and used they/them pronouns, was shot and killed by six Georgia State Troopers on Jan. 18 as officers raided campgrounds occupied by environmental demonstrators who had allegedly been camping out for months to protest the development of the training center, dubbed "Cop City" by critics.

After months of investigating, the Stone Mountain Circuit District Attorney’s Office says the troopers' use of lethal force was "objectively reasonable under the circumstances of the case."

In their report, officials say the troopers spoke with Tortuguita, who refused to leave and zipped up the tent in which they were living.

After an officer fired pepper balls at the tents, officials say that the environmental activist fired multiple shots - hitting Georgia State Patrol Trooper Jerry Parrish below his armor plate and above his belt on his right side and lodging the bullet in his spine. The troopers then returned fire, hitting and killing Tortuguita.

In a new report released Friday, the Stone Mountain Circuit District Attorney's Office says they found that the troopers "did not act with any criminal intent" due to the circumstances and said it was "not feasible" for the troopers to issue a warning before firing. 

Family of Manual Taran react to DA's findings

Word that the Stone Mountain Judicial Circuit DA will not file charges against the six state troopers who shot and killed reached the 26-year-old's mother.

"There is nothing we can believe and understand. So many stories. I don't believe what they are saying, until we have a real investigation," mom Belkis Teran said. 

His mother is still calling for an independent investigation.

"Why so much cruelty? To kill one person with one or two bullets is enough. 57 wounds, 13 bullets apparently, so why?" his mom questioned.

Attorneys for The Toran family have asked for full transparency, now that the investigation is over.

"To continue to withhold it and withhold evidence and deny this family the ability to go through the evidence for themselves is incredibly painful," attorney Jeff Filipovits emphasized.

The Toran family would like for an independent agency to look at the facts of the case. 

What the family and official autopsy reveal

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.

"Both Manuel’s left and right hands show exit wounds in both palms. The autopsy further reveals that Manuel was most probably in a seated position, cross-legged when killed," the family’s attorney expressed in March.

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 Medcial Examers's  autopsy, which released to the public the month after, showed now 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. 

Family responds to decision to not charge troopers

In response to the announcement that the troopers will not be charged, Tortuguita's family called the prosecutor's decision "a rubber stamp of the GBI's version of events without any critical analysis."

While the family called the lack of charge's disappointing, they criticized the government's choice to not release the investigation file, which they say prevents them from independently investigating the activist's death.

We have waited eight months for the truth. We are in pain. We want to hear the interviews. We want our experts to review the lab tests. We want our questions answered. This report does not answer our questions," Tortuguita's mother Belkis Teran said in a statement. "How long must we wait?" 

Response to Tortuguita's death

Tortuguita’s death and their dedication to opposing the training center vaulted the "Stop Cop City" movement onto the national and international stage, with leftist activists from across the country holding vigils and prompting some to travel and join the protest movement that began in 2021. They say officers at the 85-acre center would be trained to become more militarized and quell dissent, all while hundreds of trees are cut down, damaging the climate and flood mitigation in a poor, majority-Black neighborhood.

A few protests have turned violent, including one in March when more than 150 masked activists left a nearby music festival and stormed the proposed site of the training center, setting fire to construction equipment and throwing rocks at retreating law enforcement officers. Georgia prosecutors indicted 61 people on RICO charges in connection with protests, calling the defendants "militant anarchists" who are accused of committing arson and damaging property in metro Atlanta.

The Atlanta City Council approved building the proposed $90 million Atlanta Public Safety Training Center in 2021, saying a state-of-the-art campus would replace substandard offerings and boost police morale, which is beset by hiring and retention struggles in the wake of violent protests against racial injustice that roiled the city after George Floyd was killed by police in 2020.

Currently, a petition signed by more than 116,000 Atlanta residents in the attempt to put the training center up to a vote remains in limbo after officials say it was submitted past the deadline.

You can read the full report below:

The Associated Press contributed to this report.