ATLANTA (AP) – In the face of a frozen jury, a judge on Tuesday declared a malpractice in the case of three former Georgia Sheriff’s deputies accused of murdering a black man they repeatedly shocked with electric batons during an arrest in 2017.
Senior Judge H. Gibbs Flanders Jr. gave the defense motions for misconduct in the charges against Henry Lee Copeland, Michael Howell and Rhett Scott in connection with the death of Eurie Martin, 58, instead of having changed their minds on Friday, the first day of the trial and that more time is unlikely to result in the unanimity required for convictions or acquittals.
With a history of schizophrenia, Martin was walking through the town of Deepstep in central Georgia on a hot day in July 2017, taking a 50-kilometer trip to visit his relatives for his birthday. A resident called 911 to report Martin as suspicious after Martin approached the person and asked for a drink of water.
Officers responding said Martin refused to stop walking, threw down a soda can and assumed an aggressive posture, causing them to fire their stun guns if he did not follow instructions.
In addition to the murder, the dismissed MPs were charged with negligent homicide, wrongful imprisonment, aggravated assault, ordinary assault and reckless acts.
The case highlights the persistent reluctance of some jurors to convict law enforcement officers of wrongdoing.
District Attorney Tripp Fitzner wrote in an email that he had requested minutes of the trial and would study it before deciding whether to retrial the case. “Out of respect for Mr. Martin’s family, you will be the first to find out about it,” wrote Fitzner, praising the prosecutors for their “hard-working and passionate work”.
The three men are still under indictment and are released on bail.
Muwali Davis, an attorney for Martin’s family, said the relatives were disappointed and said Martin’s life was “worth the investment to try this case again.”
“This family wanted justice and a closure, and they don’t,” Davis said in a telephone interview following the verdict.
Prosecutors argued that Copeland, Howell and Scott, all white men, had no reason to arrest Martin. They pointed to extensive video evidence that they believed the MPs were inappropriately aggressive, as well as statements made by some witnesses.
However, defense lawyers said Martin walked on the street illegally, was littered with trash when he dropped a soda can, and adopted an aggressive stance and interfered with an officer if he did not obey MPs’ orders. They also argued that the stun gun did not result in Martin’s death, which means the officers did not attack him with a lethal weapon, a key element of one of the murder allegations.
Defense attorney Mark Shaefer told the jury in closing arguments that Martin was not allowed to leave and the officers’ actions were justified, calling it a “tragic, tragic accident” but not a crime.
However, Assistant District Attorney Kelly Weathers argued that if your actions recklessly disregard the foreseeable, death is not an accident.
Howell and Scott, but not Copeland, testified in their own defense.
The trial came after the Georgia Supreme Court denied a lower court ruling that MPs should be immune from prosecution. Flanders first found that the use of force against Martin was justified under the Georgian “Stand your Ground” law. This law allows people to use force to defend themselves if they have a reasonable belief that they are in physical danger.
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