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ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - A 62-year-old Atlanta deacon died in August after an Atlanta Police Department officer hit him with a Taser and handcuffed him during a traffic stop.
For months, Johnny Hollman’s family called for authorities to release police body camera footage of the incident. On Wednesday morning, prosecutors released the video.
The nearly hour-long bodycam video released by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis shows the confrontation between Hollman and the officer, later identified as Kiran Kimbrough, that led to Hollman’s death.
“The video will be difficult to watch for many people, especially the family of Mr. Hollman,” Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens said in a statement. “I continue to extend my deepest sympathy to them and hold them close in my thoughts and prayers. We also extend our gratitude to those in the community who have embraced and supported the family during these difficult months.”
In a statement, the Atlanta Police Department said: “The goal of both the mayor and the district attorney is to provide transparency while recognizing that protecting the integrity of an investigation and possible subsequent prosecution may require a temporary withholding of video evidence from public release.”
Mawuli Davis, an attorney for the family of Hollman, said the family is grateful Willis “has taken this important step to ensure transparency.”
Shortly after the incident on Aug. 10, police said Hollman allegedly refused to sign a traffic ticket and became “agitated and uncooperative.” Police said the APD officer then shocked Hollman with a Taser and handcuffed him before noticing he was unresponsive. Hollman died after he was taken to Grady Hospital, according to the Atlanta Police Department. The incident happened at Cunningham Place and Joseph E. Lowery Boulevard.
“What he did to our father was senseless. What he did to our father was murder,” Hollman’s daughter Arnitra Hollman said. “We’re not going to let the city sweep this under the rug. We’re not going to let the city get away with this.”
The Hollman family is now calling for Kimbrough to face criminal charges in the case. He was fired by the Atlanta Police Department in October but is appealing his termination.
Here’s what happened in the video:
WARNING: This video is graphic and may be disturbing to some viewers. Atlanta News First believes it is important to show the video, however, a decision was made to stop the video when Mr. Hollman appears to be unconscious.
The video from Kimbrough’s body camera shows Kimbrough meet Hollman and the other driver involved in the crash at the intersection.
Hollman tells Kimbrough he had the green light and the other driver hit the side of his truck. The video shows the other driver’s car had collided with Hollman’s truck on its left side.
The other driver says Hollman cut too sharply making the turn and ran into his car. Hollman disputes the other driver’s account and Kimbrough tells Hollman to go wait at his truck.
Kimbrough later returns to Hollman and says he found him at fault in the crash because he cut his turn short and hands him a ticket.
Hollman tells Kimbrough the crash wasn’t his fault. Kimbrough tells Hollman to sign the ticket and Hollman asks for a sergeant to come to the scene.
Kimbrough says he’ll call the sergeant, “But you’re still going to sign this ticket.”
Hollman continues to say he wasn’t at fault in the accident. Kimbrough tells Hollman to lower his voice a few times in the video, asking why he’s shouting, and Hollman tells the officer he’s not shouting.
Kimbrough tells him, “Now, you’re going to sign this ticket or I’m going to take you to jail. I suggest you sign the ticket.”
Kimbrough repeatedly orders Hollman to sign the ticket. Hollman says he’ll sign it as Kimbrough grabs at his right arm and again repeat his command.
Hollman tells Kimbrough his right arm hurts. Kimbrough grabs his arm and a brief struggle appears to ensue as Kimbrough puts Hollman on the ground.
Kimbrough struggles with Hollman on the ground, again ordering Hollman to sign the ticket as Hollman says he didn’t do anything wrong and asks why the officer is treating him this way.
“I’m an old man. I’m an old man,” Hollman says.
“Sign the ticket,” Kimbrough shouts. “I’m going to tase you. Put your arms behind your back now.”
Hollman tells Kimbrough his asthma is acting up and says over and over again that he can’t breathe.
He tells the officer “I can’t breathe” at least 13 times.
Kimbrough repeatedly orders Hollman to put his hands behind his back.
“I’m going to tell your a-- one more time, put your hands behind your back,” Kimbrough says.
Kimbrough tases Hollman as he again tells him to put his hands behind his back.
Kimbrough handcuffs Hollman as he lies unresponsive on the ground.
Hollman appears unconscious. The video shows he’s bleeding from his face. Kimbrough calls for EMS and checks for vital signs on Hollman and says he’s still breathing.
The video shows Kimbrough trying to wake up Hollman as other officers arrive.
Kimbrough tells the other officers he ordered Hollman to sign the ticket and he refused and started resisting, so he took him to the ground, when Hollman, he said, “started grabbing my hand like he was going to hit me, so I punched him a couple times, tased him, and put him in cuffs, and I don’t know what’s going on with him now. He’s still breathing, though.”
Paramedics arrive and perform CPR on Hollman around 10 minutes later.
At a vigil Tuesday evening, Hollman’s daughter, Arnitra Hollman, said she saw the full body camera footage for the first time earlier in the day.
“The public should expect to see exactly what we saw. Murder. Senseless murder,” she said. “It confirmed what I already knew in my heart.”
Davis said the footage would show the public that Hollman remained peaceful during the incident.
“He gave no violence towards this officer. He was moving in peace,” Davis said Tuesday. “We don’t want people to go back to business as usual after Thanksgiving. We want them to organize, to do what organizers do, to get politicized and get engaged. That’s the only way that this kind of atrocity can be avoided going forward.”
Davis and Johnny Hollman’s family encouraged people to respond peacefully when they see the body camera footage.
“I’m sad, I’m hurt, and again I’m angry because this is my first holiday without my father, and he should be here. He should not be dead,” Arnitra said.
Before the release of the bodycam video, Davis said in a statement that Johnny Hollman “had just finished Bible study and was on the way home to take dinner to his wife when he was involved in a minor car accident.”
Davis claims Hollman called 911 and waited for over an hour for the police to arrive. Davis said Kimbrough arrived and decided Hollman was at fault and issued him a traffic ticket. Hollman then asked to see a sergeant, but Kimbrough “ignored him and told him he would take him to jail if he did not sign the ticket,” according to Davis.
Hollman told Kimbrough he would sign the ticket, but Kimbrough “grabbed him, took him to the ground,” and shocked him with his Taser, Davis claimed.
“Deacon Hollman told the officer ‘I can’t breathe’ at least 13 times,” Davis said.
Hollman had underlying conditions of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, diabetes and obesity, according to an autopsy report.
“My daddy was dealing with asthma ever since he was a child,” Anitra told Atlanta News First in August. “Ever since he was a child, he had chronic asthma, and everybody knew it. Everybody knew it. You couldn’t put him in distress. It would flare up. He can’t breathe when he says he can’t breathe, and you all have to take care of him.”
The death sparked protests across Atlanta, including a march to Atlanta City Hall on Aug. 24.
Dickens ordered a full investigation of Hollman’s death and called for a review of the police department’s standard operating procedure.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation opened an investigation and ruled the death a homicide.
Kimbrough was fired after an internal investigation of Hollman’s death, Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum said last month.
In a statement, the department said the officer “violated standard operating procedure when he failed to have a supervisor on the scene prior to proceeding with the physical arrest.”
After his firing, Kimbrough’s attorney, Lance LoRusso, said the former APD officer “vehemently denies any wrongdoing or policy violations in connection with the investigation, detention, and arrest of Mr. Johnny Hollman. He will appeal his termination reportedly predicated upon his failure to call for a supervisor when Mr. Hollman refused to sign a lawfully issued citation as he was legally obligated to do.”
After Hollman’s death, Atlanta police revised their standard operating procedure for traffic tickets. Officers will now be allowed to write “refusal to sign” in the signature line if the driver refuses to sign it, and “issue a copy of charges in lieu of a physical arrest.”
Dickens said other changes that resulted from the investigation into Hollman’s death included the expedited launch of the police department’s “civilian response unit.”
“Yearly, police officers respond to tens of thousands of low-risk calls for service. These calls monopolize significant patrol hours as they often carry a high level of administrative complexity,” Dickens said. “This unit, composed of unarmed specially trained civilians, will serve citywide by responding to minor traffic offenses, accidents and thefts from cars as well as handling various traffic management needs.”
Dickens said new policy guidelines and procedures were also developed in partnership with the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office and the GBI “when considering the public release of video evidence showing the use-of-force by an Atlanta police officer that has resulted in serious bodily injury or death, and which is subject to investigation by the GBI.”
Originally Posted by Brian4Liberty
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