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`Stop fighting!' Atlanta sobriety test quickly turned deadly

ATLANTA (AP) - One minute, Rayshard Brooks was chatting cooperatively with Atlanta police, saying he'd had a couple of drinks to celebrate his daughter's birthday and agreeing to a breath test. The next, they were wrestling on the ground and grappling over a Taser before Brooks took the weapon and ran.

Seconds later, three gunshots sounded and Brooks fell mortally wounded.

Atlanta police video released Sunday showing a seemingly routine sobriety check outside a Wendy's restaurant that quickly spun out of control, ending in gunfire. The killing of the 27-year-old black man in an encounter with two white officers late Friday rekindled fiery protests in Atlanta and prompted the police chief's resignation.

Police said Sunday the department terminated Officer Garrett Rolfe, who fired the fatal shots, and officer Devin Brosnan was placed on administrative duty. Rolfe had worked for the department since October 2013, and Brosnan since September 2018.

Meanwhile, authorities announced a $10,000 reward for information finding those responsible for setting fire to the Wendy's restaurant at the shooting scene. Flames gutted the restaurant late Saturday after demonstrations grew turbulent. The protests prompted 36 arrests.

More than 100 people, some sporting umbrellas and rain gear after on-and-off rain, protested peacefully at the site Sunday evening. Police blocked some side streets, slowing traffic in the area as people held up signs.

The two officers' body cameras and the dash-mounted cameras in their patrol cars showed they spent more than 40 minutes peacefully questioning Brooks. The fighting erupted when they tried to handcuff Brooks.

Andy Harvey, chief of police of Ennis, Texas, who has written books and developed training on community policing, said such moments can turn in a split second.

'œThe moment you put your hands on someone is when someone will decide whether to comply or resist," Harvey said. "That's what happened in Atlanta.'ť

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation will present the findings of its investigation to prosecutors. Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard said in a statement Sunday he hopes to reach a decision by midweek on whether to bring charges against the officers.

The officers were called late Friday over complaints of a car blocking the restaurant's drive-thru lane. Brosnan arrived first and found Brooks alone in the car, apparently asleep. Brooks agreed to move the car, showed his license, and Rolfe arrived minutes later to conduct a sobriety check.

'œI know you're just doing your job,'ť Brooks says on video after consenting to a breath test. He mentions celebrating his daughter's birthday and says: 'ťI just had a few drinks, that's all."

Rolfe doesn't tell Brooks the results though his body camera recorded a digital readout of 0.108 - higher than the 0.08-gram blood alcohol content considered too intoxicated to drive in Georgia.

'œAll right, I think you've had too much to drink to be driving," Rolfe tells Brooks. 'œPut your hands behind your back.'ť

The video shows each officer take hold of one of Brooks' wrists as Rolfe tries to handcuff him. Brooks tries to run and the officers take him to the ground.

'œStop fighting!'ť one officers yells.

One of the dash cameras recorded the brawl. As Brooks fights to stand, Brosnan presses a Taser to his leg and threatens to stun him. Brooks grabs the Taser and pulls it away. He struggles to his feet, the Taser in his hand, and starts running.

Rolfe fires his Taser and a yelp can be heard above the weapon's electric crackle. Rolfe runs after Brooks, and seconds later three gunshots sound.

Both officers' body cameras were knocked to the ground in the struggle, and none of the four police cameras captured the shooting. Footage released from a Wendy's security camera showed Brooks turn and point an object in his hand at one of the officers, who was steps behind him. The officer draws his gun and fires.

'œAs I pursued him, he turned and started firing the Taser at me,'ť Rolfe told a supervisor after the shooting in a videotaped conversation. 'œ...He definitely did shoot it at me at least once.'ť

GBI spokeswoman Nelly Miles said Sunday she could not confirm whether Brooks fired the Taser.

Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said Saturday she doesn't believe the shooting was justified. Police Chief Erika Shields, who joined the department as a beat officer in 1995, resigned.

Brooks' death inflamed raw emotions in Atlanta and across the U.S. following the May 25 police custody killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

Some public officials questioned whether shooting of Brooks was as clearly an abuse as Floyd's death after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed a knee to his neck.

'œThe question is when the suspect turned to fire the Taser, what should the officer have done?'ť U.S. Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, said on CBS' 'œFace The Nation.'ť Scott, the Senate's only black Republican, said Brooks's death 'œis certainly a far less clear one than the ones that we saw with George Floyd and several other ones.'ť

Stacey Abrams, the former Democratic lawmaker who gained national prominence while running for governor in 2018, said 'œthere's a legitimacy to this outrage'ť over Brooks' death.

L. Chris Stewart, a Brooks family attorney, said the officer who shot him should be charged for 'œan unjustified use of deadly force, which equals murder.'ť

Stewart said that Brooks, a father of four, on Friday had celebrated the eighth birthday of one of his daughters.

___

Bynum reported from Savannah, Georgia. Associated Press writers Mallika Sen in New York, Regina Garcia Cano in Washington, D.C., and Sean Murphy in Oklahoma City contributed to this report.

"RIP Rayshard" is spray painted on a sign as as flames engulf a Wendy's restaurant during protests Saturday, June 13, 2020, in Atlanta. The restaurant was where Rayshard Brooks was shot and killed by police Friday evening following a struggle in the restaurant's drive-thru line. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson) The Associated Press
This undated photo provided by the Atlanta Police Department shows Officer Garrett Rolfe. Rolfe was fired following the fatal shooting of a black man and another officer was placed on administrative duty, the police department announced early Sunday, June 14, 2020. (Atlanta Police Department via AP) The Associated Press
CORRECTS LAST NAME TO BROSNAN INSTEAD OF BRONSAN - This undated photo provided by the Atlanta Police Department shows Officer Devin Brosnan. Brosnan was placed on administrative duty and another officer was fired following the fatal shooting of a black man, the police department announced early Sunday, June 14, 2020. (Atlanta Police Department via AP) The Associated Press
CORRECTS THE PHOTOGRAPHER'S NAME - People hold a rally at Wendy's on University Avenue in Atlanta on Sunday, June 14, 2020. Rayshard Brooks died after a confrontation with police officers at the fast food restaurant in Atlanta on Friday. (Steve Schaefer/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP) The Associated Press
Protestors and traffic along University Ave has steadily increased throughout the day Sunday, June 14, 2020 where Brooks, a 27-year-old black man, was shot and killed by Atlanta police Friday evening during a struggle in a Wendy's drive-thru line. (Steve Schaefer/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP) The Associated Press
A Wendy's restaurant sign is engulfed in smoke during a protest Saturday, June 13, 2020, in Atlanta. The restaurant was where Rayshard Brooks was shot and killed by police Friday evening following a struggle in the restaurant's drive-thru line. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson) The Associated Press
Protesters block University Avenue, Saturday, June 13, 2020, near the Atlanta Wendy's where Rayshard Brooks was shot and killed by police Friday evening following a struggle in the restaurant's drive-thru line in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson) The Associated Press
EDS NOTE: OBSCENITY - A protester marches Saturday, June 13, 2020, near the Atlanta Wendy's where Rayshard Brooks was shot and killed by police Friday evening following a struggle in the restaurant's drive-thru line. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson) The Associated Press
Rapper T.I. hugs a family member of Rayshard Brooks during protests, Saturday, June 13, 2020, near the Wendy's restaurant where Brooks was shot and killed by police Friday evening following a struggle in the restaurant's drive-thru line in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson) The Associated Press
Flames engulf a Wendy's restaurant during protests Saturday, June 13, 2020, in Atlanta. The restaurant was where Rayshard Brooks was shot and killed by police Friday evening following a struggle in the restaurant's drive-thru line. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson) The Associated Press
This screen grab taken from body camera video provided by the Atlanta Police Department shows Rayshard Brooks speaking with Officer Garrett Rolfe as Rolfe writes notes during a field sobriety test in the parking lot of a Wendy's restaurant, late Friday, June 12, 2020, in Atlanta. Rolfe has been fired following the fatal shooting of Brooks and a second officer has been placed on administrative duty. (Atlanta Police Department via AP) The Associated Press
This screen grab taken from dashboard camera video provided by the Atlanta Police Department shows Rayshard Brooks, left, and Officer Garrett Rolfe pointing Tasers at one another, while Officer Devin Brosnan is seen getting up after a struggle among the three men in the parking lot of a Wendy's restaurant, early Saturday, June 13, 2020, in Atlanta. Rolfe has been fired following the fatal shooting of Brooks and Brosnan has been placed on administrative duty. (Atlanta Police Department via AP) The Associated Press
This screen grab taken from dashboard camera video provided by the Atlanta Police Department shows Rayshard Brooks, center, struggling with Officers Garrett Rolfe, left, and Devin Brosnan in the parking lot of a Wendy's restaurant, early Saturday, June 13, 2020, in Atlanta. Rolfe has been fired following the fatal shooting of Brooks and Brosnan has been placed on administrative duty. (Atlanta Police Department via AP) The Associated Press
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