White Cop Who Killed Unarmed Mentally Ill Veteran Identified

The white police officer who shot and killed a black Air Force veteran while he ran around his apartment complex naked has been pictured.

Robert Olsen responded to a call at the Heights of Chamblee in Atlanta on Monday and gunned down Anthony ‘Tony’ Hill, 27, who had been climbing over balconies and crawling along the floor.

One witness said the cop told Hill to go inside otherwise he was going to get arrested, but was shot when he started running toward Olsen and ignored orders to stop.

On Wednesday, the former soldier’s girlfriend Bridget Anderson revealed he was being treated by a Veterans’ Association (VA) doctor for bipolar disorder but stopped taking the medication a week or two ago because he didn’t like the side effects, including stiffening in his jaw.

She described how she was on the way to his house to cook and celebrate their three-year anniversary when she found out he was dead.

Hill had served more than four years in the U.S. Air Force when he was medically discharged a few years ago.

Anderson, 22, said she didn’t notice any changes in her boyfriend after he stopped taking his medication and she’d never known him to behave strangely.

‘This is totally out of the blue,’ she said, referring to the strange behavior police and others described before Hill was shot.

Hill is black and the officer who shot him is white. No weapon was found, and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation is looking into the shooting.

More than 100 protesters gathered in the city of Decatur on Wednesday night to protest his death.

Most said they hoped the latest shooting would become part of an ongoing national discussion on how police officers interact with citizens, especially minorities.

The relationship between law enforcement and civilians — particularly in poor, minority and high-crime neighborhoods — has become a contentious issue in many states across the U.S. following the high-profile deaths of unarmed men and teens by police officers, some of whom have been exonerated of wrongdoing after saying they perceived the males they shot as threats.

Authorities described how Olsen approached him and Hill turned towards him.

‘When the male saw the officer, he charged, running at the officer,’ said DeKalb County Director of Public Safety Cedric Alexander. ‘The officer called on him to step back, drew his weapon and fired two shots.’

Witness Oscar Perez told ABC11Alive: ‘The man, he was liked drugged, but he was naked and he was crawling. I think the police officer thought he was going to attack, so he shot him.’

Hill was shot in the upper torso.

The officer, who is white, is a seven-year veteran of the Dekalb County Police Department. He has not been identified.

County police chief Cedric Alexander told reporters that the officer had been equipped with a Taser at the time of the shooting. He would not comment on whether the officer should have used the Taser but said that the Georgia Bureau of Investigation would take over the probe into the shooting.

He added that he could ‘reasonably assume’ that Hill was possible suffering from mental illness at the time, given his behavior.

On his social media profiles, Hill had used the hashtag ‘#IAmBipolar’.

In his final Facebook post on Monday morning, Hill wrote: ‘Where i once saw death i only see life.’

Social media also shows Hill was an Air Force veteran who had served in the Middle East.

His girlfriend, Bridget Anderson, wrote on Twitter on Monday: ‘My boyfriend was SHOT AND KILLED today by an officer. HE WAS UNARMED. Never in a million years did I think this would happen.

‘I thought cops were suppose to protect and serve???? THEY TOOK THE LOVE OF MY LIFE AWAY!!!!!’

She added on Twitter that Monday had been their three-year anniversary.

‘Who will I share my secrets with now?’ she wrote. ‘Who will I call when something good happens? How will I move on from this? Lord give me the strength.’

Police forces across the country have come under fire for their use of lethal force, especially against ethnic minorities, the poor and the mentally ill.

Mr Alexander added: ‘We have already, as many departments have begun to do, look at how do we expand our mental health training. It appears that we’re seeing more and more of these cases across the country in which police are engaging with those who may be in distress.’

Hill is at least the third African-American since last Friday who has or has appeared to have been unarmed when killed by police.

Police near Denver last Friday fatally shot an unarmed man who was a wanted fugitive.

On the same day, an officer in Madison, Wisconsin fatally shot a biracial 19-year-old, prompting some 2,000 students to march in the state’s capital on Monday.