Atlanta police call out in response to charges against officer
Atlanta PD issued a statement on Twitter noting they were experiencing a higher number of call-outs than usual
Multiple sources in the Atlanta Police Department have said that officers are not responding to calls in several of the city’s zones and that an “unusual number” of officers are calling out sick.
Multiple sources in the Atlanta Police Department have said that officers are not responding to calls in several of the city’s zones and that an “unusual number” of officers are calling out sick.
The action is perceived to be in response to the 11 charges that were filed against Garrett Rolfe in relation to the shooting death of Rayshard Brooks.
READ MORE: Fulton County DA announces charges in shooting death of Rayshard Brooks
The charges against Rolfe include felony murder, five counts of aggravated assault, four counts of violation of oath of office, and one count of criminal damage to property.
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The unusual amount of call-outs prompted Atlanta PD to issue a statement on Twitter, “The department is experiencing a higher than usual number of call-outs with the incoming shift,” they wrote, “We have enough resources to maintain operations & remain able to respond to incidents.”
Earlier suggestions that multiple officers from each zone had walked off the job were inaccurate. The department is experiencing a higher than usual number of call outs with the incoming shift. We have enough resources to maintain operations & remain able to respond to incidents.
— Atlanta Police Department (@Atlanta_Police) June 18, 2020
Police officers are seen during a protest over the Minneapolis death of George Floyd while in police custody on May 29, 2020 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images)
Atlanta mayor, Keisha Lance Bottoms, asked officers to “honor their commitment” to the city in an interview with Chris Cuomo on CNN. “There’s a lot happening in our cities and our police officers are receiving the brunt of it, quite frankly,” Bottoms said, “We expect that our officers will keep their commitment to our communities.”
A protester speaks to police officers during a demonstration on May 31, 2020 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images)
She stated that morale is down in the department, “ten-fold.” She plans to offer officers a pay increase.
“Our streets won’t be any less safe because of the number of officers who called out,” Bottoms said, “But it is just my hope again that our officers will remember the commitment that they made when they held up their hand and they were sworn in as police officers.”
READ MORE: Fulton County DA announces charges in shooting death of Rayshard Brooks
Garrett Rolfe shot Rayshard Brooks after an interaction in a Wendy’s parking lot when the man was found sleeping in the drive-thru. According to Atlanta District Attorney, Paul Howard, Rolfe kicked Brooks after shooting him. He exclaimed, “I got him!” and failed to offer first aid.
When asked about her response to the new details of the case, Brooks’ widow, Tomika Miller, began to cry and said, “I was very hurt. … I felt everything that he felt just by hearing what he went through. And it hurt. It hurt really bad.”
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