Per AP News, newly released 2020 dashcam footage from a Georgia State Cruiser is raising questions about how a state trooper avoided charges of fatally shooting a black man. Officer Thompson attempted to pull over 60-year-old man, Julian Lewis, for a burnt-out tail light. After a 5-minute pursuit, Lewis pulled onto a dirt road and Officer Thompson forced him to turn into a ditch. 1.6 seconds after crashing into a ditch, Officer Thompson fired a single shot into Lewis’s forehead, killing him instantly.
Officer Thompson claims that Lewis tried to run him over immediately after stepping out of his vehicle. However, investigation details released to AP news contradict Thompson’s account of the incident. Lewis’s car shows that the motor had disconnected during the collision, making his car unable to move to hit Thompson. A grand jury chose not to indict Thompson, and the State of Georgia paid a $4.8 million settlement to Julian Lewis’s family. Thompson vowed to never work in law enforcement again.
Use-of-force experts have claimed the video shows unjustified force, making the public question if the State of Georgia ruled wrongly.
