Georgia Police Shooting Just One of Many Angering America
The last month has brought a spate of six police killings of unarmed men.
The latest killings have further inflamed tensions after months of protests over the police shooting in August of Michael Brown, an unarmed 18-year-old black man, in Ferguson, Mo.
Here’s a look at the latest police shootings.
DeKalb County, Ga., March 9
A police officer on Monday fatally shot a naked unarmed man, who authorities described as deranged.
Officers responded to a report of a suspicious person in an area east of Atlanta, police said. Before officers arrived, another call came in that the man had removed his clothes and was running around.
Officer Robert Olsen, a seven-year veteran of the department, shot and killed 27-year-old Anthony Hill, who is black.
Hill charged at Olsen, who fired two shots, according to DeKalb County Police Capt. Steve Fore. Olsen was carrying a stun gun, but didn’t use it.
Olsen was placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Hill had been arrested several times by Atlanta police, on suspicion of marijuana possession, obstructing an officer’s performance, and disorderly conduct, court records show.
Aurora, Colo., March 6
Aurora police shot and killed an unarmed black 37-year-old man Friday.
Naeschylus Vinzant died of a single gunshot wound to the chest, according to the Arapahoe County coroner’s office.
Vinzant had removed his ankle monitor and fled from parole March 2, authorities said. He was wanted in connection with an “assault, robbery, kidnapping and domestic violence incident” that took place that day, police said.
Vinzant was killed four days later as police moved to arrest him. The city’s SWAT team was called in because of Vinzant’s “past violent history,” police said.
Court records show Vinzant previously faced charges of assault, menacing, eludicing police and illegal weapons possession.
Madison, Wis., March 6
Also on Friday, a Madison police officer shot and killed 19-year-old Tony Robinson, another unarmed black man.
Officer Matt Kenny heard a disturbance in the apartment and forced his way in, according to police.
After a scuffle with Robinson in which Kenny received a “blow to the head,” the officer shot Robinson, according to Madison Police Chief Mike Koval.
Robinson later was pronounced dead of gunshot wounds. Koval did not disclose how many shots were fired, citing the information as part of the shooting investigation, which will be handled by the state’s Division of Criminal Investigation.
Los Angeles, March 1 and March 5
The fatal shooting of an unarmed man on skid row renewed debate over how to properly police the homeless and mentally ill people living on the streets.
Charly Leundeu Keunang, a 43-year-old black man, died of multiple gunshot wounds on March 1, according to coroner’s officials.
Police said Keunang refused to follow their commands and tried to fight them, reaching for an officer’s holstered pistol. The gun’s slide was partially pulled back and the magazine dislodged, Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck said.
Activists have since denounced the shooting, which was caught on video, taking to the streets in protest and calling for an independent investigation.
A second investigation is underway following the fatal shooting March 5 of an unarmed motorist involved in a pursuit in Burbank.
Sergio Navas, 35, was shot by an officer sitting in a squad car after their two cars collided during the chase.
Wounded, the man got out of the car and ran, but officers chased him down and handcuffed him, said Officer Wendy Reyes.
He was declared dead at the scene after paramedics tried to resuscitate him.
The chase began when the man sped away from LAPD officers who tried to pull him over, police said. Officers started following the car because it had paper plates and Navas was “driving erratically,” they said.
Officers followed him into Burbank, where the man drove into a short cul-de-sac and was cornered. The man’s car collided with the passenger side of the LAPD car, and the officer in the passenger seat started shooting, police said.
Pasco, Wash., Feb. 10
Police in Pasco shot and killed Antonio Zambrano-Montes in a parking lot Feb. 10, following reports that he was hurling rocks at vehicles.
A video posted to YouTube appears to show Zambrano-Montes, 35, exiting the parking lot and then running down a side street with officers in pursuit.
Pasco police said they had ordered Zambrano-Montes to stop throwing rocks several times and tried to subdue him with a stun gun after he hit two officers with rocks.
Police fired 17 rounds at Zambrano-Montes, according to Sgt. Ken Lattin, public information officer for the Tri-Cities Special Investigations Unit, which is reviewing the shooting.
Bullets struck him at least five times, investigators said.