By Jovonne Ledet
https://www.binnews.com/
An Atlanta police officer has been fired after tasing a church deacon who later died, per People.
According to reports, deacon Johnny Hollman Sr. was driving home from Bible study in August when he crashed into another vehicle.
Atlanta police arrived at the scene and officer Kiran Kimbrough “attempted to issue a traffic citation,” the department previously said. However, “the driver became agitated and uncooperative” and “a struggle ensued,” according to the department.
“After several minutes struggling with the driver, the officer utilized his taser and, with the help of a witness, placed him into handcuffs,” police said. “Once the driver was in handcuffs, the officer realized he was unresponsive and requested EMS to the scene.”
Hollman was taken to an Atlanta hospital, where he was later pronounced dead. A medical examiner determined Hollman’s cause of death to be homicide and noted heart disease as a contributing factor.
Earlier this week, the Atlanta police announced that Kimbrough, who is Black, was terminated from the department. An investigation into the incident remains “active and ongoing,” the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said.
“Every single person and life in the City of Atlanta matters to me,” Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum said in a statement. “Part of my job is to assess, evaluate, and adjust how this police department is carrying out its sworn mission to serve and protect the citizens of this city.”
The department said Kimbrough’s termination was based on “failing to follow the department’s standard operating procedures.”
Criminal charges may be filed against Kimbrough in the coming months, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said.
“We’re going to continue to fight for justice all the way to the very end, so we can do justice for our father,” Hollman’s daughter, Arnitra Hollman, said, in a statement.
The family of Johnny Hollman Sr., a 62-year-old deacon who died after being tased by an Atlanta police officer during a traffic ticket dispute, is suing the city.
According to the Atlanta Black Star, a lawsuit was filed last week over the “needless and wrongful” death of Hollman. The suit names the city, as well as Kiran Kimbrough, the former police officer accused of using excessive force and tasing Hollman to death, as well as his chief.
The suit stems from a minor car accident on August 10 involving Hollman, who was on his way home from Bible study at his church, Lively Stones of God Ministries. Kimbrough found Hollman at fault for the accident and asked him to sign a ticket.
In body camera footage, Hollman denied that he was at fault for the accident and asked to speak to a supervisor.
“Who are you screaming at?” Kimbrough said in the footage. “I told you once, lower your voice. You’re not going to scream at me. Do you understand what I’m telling you? Now you’re going to sign this ticket, or I’m going to take you to jail.”
Kimbrough told Hollman he could speak with a supervisor after he signed the ticket. The two went back and forth before Hollman agreed to sign the document. At one point during the encounter, Kimbrough used a “leg sweep maneuver” to take the 62-year-old to the ground.
“Ignoring Deacon Hollman’s concession to his request that he sign the ticket, Defendant Kimbrough performed a leg sweep maneuver on Deacon Hollman, taking Deacon Hollman to the ground,” the lawsuit states. “While doing so, Defendant Kimbrough commented to Deacon Hollman: ‘You acting crazy!’ Once on the ground, Deacon Hollman told Defendant Kimbrough, ‘I’m an old man.”
The officer ordered Hollman to put his hands behind his back before striking and tasing the deacon. Hollman repeatedly said “I can’t breathe” during the encounter, according to the lawsuit.
Hollman was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead. The manner of his death was ruled a homicide.
Kimbrough was fired from the Atlanta Police Department in October, but the family is calling for him to be criminally charged.
“Police misconduct that is not punished or sanctioned is likely to be repeated. We are alleging in this lawsuit that time after time we see the City of Atlanta ignore police violence against innocent citizens, often finding minor administrative violations rather than excessive force as a basis for slap on the wrist discipline,” attorney Harold Spence said in a statement. “This ratification of police violence needs to stop and stop now!”
Photo Cutline: Former Officer Kiran Kimbrough, left, (Atlanta Police Department via AP) and Johnny Hollman Sr. in an undated photo at the church where he was a deacon. (Arnitra Hallman/Davis Bozeman Johnson Law via AP)
Johnny Hollman Sr. and Former Officer Kiran Kimbrough
