GBI investigation sheds new light on Rayshard Brooks shooting

In a recently filed motion to ease bond restrictions, Atlanta police officer Garrett Rolfe’s attorney cites details from the GBI probe into last June’s shooting of Rayshard Brooks that contradict assertions by the former district attorney who charged the 27-year-old officer with murder.

The bulk of the GBI’s findings remain unavailable to the public, and this is the first public disclosure of any details of its investigation. The agency investigates virtually every police shooting in the state and, while it makes no determination of guilt or innocence, the GBI’s findings carry considerable weight with prosecutors.

Former Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard said last June the GBI wasn’t needed on this case, pointing to extensive video evidence and eyewitness testimony of the deadly encounter between Brooks, Rolfe and another Atlanta Police Department officer, Devin Brosnan, at a downtown Wendy’s. He announced he was charging Rolfe with murder after a five-day investigation — three months before the GBI completed its probe.

Brooks was fleeing officers when he was fatally shot. Howard concluded that he posed no threat to officers in announcing murder charges.

Read more: https://www.ajc.com/news/crime/exclusive-gbi-investigation-sheds-new-light-on-rayshard-brooks-shooting/IFP3Y4CAP5CSJNTMMWWEWLNBEM/