‘They shot him down like a dog.’ Father wants justice in killing of Rayshard Brooks

ATLANTA — For a fourth straight day, demonstrators gathered outside the Wendy’s restaurant where Rayshard Brooks, 27, was shot and killed by a police officer.

Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard’s office said any possible charges in the case could come midweek.

Channel 2 investigative reporter Justin Gray spoke with Brooks’ father, Larry Barbine, from his home in Toledo, Ohio, where Brooks lived with him throughout 2019.

“They shot him down like a dog. It’s not right,” Barbine said.

The father said he had no relationship with Brooks as he grew up but built one as adults last year.

“I took him on his first sleigh ride, took him fishing for the first time,” Barbine said.

TRENDING STORIES:

• Police search for ‘instigators’ who started Wendy’s fire after Rayshard Brooks shooting
• More coronavirus restrictions lifted in Georgia
• The Children’s Place to close 300 stores; liquidation sales to begin soon

As the district attorney weighs charges against the officers who shot and killed Brooks, Gray took a look at the disciplinary records for officers Garret Rolfe and Devon Bronsan.

Rolfe's file shows a dozen incidents. He was cleared on nine of them. In 2017 he was reprimanded for a use of force complaint involving a firearm.

Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said the reason she immediately issued a new executive order Monday changing use of force policy is because she says Brooks' running should not have led to his death.

“It didn’t have to end that way,” Bottom said.

“He need to pay for what he done. He murdered my son. He outright murdered my son,” Barbine said.

One of the things that keeps being brought up in these cases is the importance of training.

According to records that Gray obtained, both officers had recently gone through use of force and de-escalation training programs, which are designed to prevent these kinds of tragedies.

Brooks leaves behind three young daughters and a 13-year-old stepson.

NAACP demands action, substantial change after police shootings The group wants charges against the officers accused of killing black men.

© 2020 Cox Media Group