Atlanta Police Chief Ericka Shields has resigned amid protests in the wake of Rayshard Brooks death at the hands of police officers Friday night.
“Chief Ericka Shields has been a solid member of APD for over two decades and has a deep and abiding love for the people of Atlanta,” Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said.
“And because of her desire that Atlanta should be a meaningful model of what reform should look like across this country, Chief Shields has offered to immediately step aside as police chief so that the city may move forward with urgency in rebuilding the trust so desperately needed throughout our communities,” she continued.
Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms calls for the "immediate termination" of the police officer who shot and killed Rayshard Brooks last night. She also announced that Atlanta's Police, Chief Ericka Shields, voluntarily stepped down. pic.twitter.com/aN6c7tlEUh
— Ana Cabrera (@AnaCabrera) June 13, 2020
The city of Atlanta is grieving after Rayshard Brooks was killed outside of a Wendy’s drive-thru in Southwest Atlanta on Friday night. Local authorities arrived at the fast-food chain after receiving a complaint that Brooks had fallen asleep in the drive-thru. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation reports that Brooks failed a sobriety test and officers attempted to place him in custody. While doing so, Brooks appears to struggle with the officers before attempting to flee the scene. As he attempts to flee, an officer fired his weapon three times and killed him.
In the hours following his killing, demonstrators took to the streets and protested against the shooting. The Wendy’s where Brooks was killed was set ablaze in the late hours of Saturday evening.
