Atlanta Police Chief Ericka Shields voluntarily stepped down from the city’s department Saturday afternoon following the deadly police shooting of 27-year-old Rayshard Brooks Friday night outside of a local Wendy’s drive-thru, The Hill Reports.
Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms announced Shields’ withdrawal from the department during a press conference Saturday, while also calling for the “immediate termination” of the officer who shot Brooks.
“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,” 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.
After he fell asleep in his car at a Wendy’s drive thru, police arrived and engaged in a scuffle with Rayshard Brooks, another black man. Brooks is seen on video taking a stun gun from one of the officers as he ran off. Police gave chase. Brooks is seen turning around as he ran and appears to fire the stun gun at one of the officers. He is shot to death shortly after.
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