A Georgia state patrol officer has been charged with felony murder after shooting and killing a Black man during an attempted traffic stop.
What We Know:
- Trooper Jacob Gordon Thompson, 27, was arrested Friday in connection with the fatal officer-involved shooting in Screven County, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said in a news release.
- Thompson stopped 60-year-old Julian Edward Roosevelt for a traffic-related offense. According to GBI, when he refused to stop, Thompson gave a brief chase before using a “precision Intervention technique,” which sent the car to a stop in a ditch.
- Thompson then proceeded to shoot Lewis in the face. He was pronounced dead on the scene. An official autopsy is being conducted by the GBI crime lab.
- Thompson will be booked into the Screven County Jail and has been charged with felony murder and aggravated assault. He was also fired from the Department of Public Safety.
- Georgia NAACP chapter declared a state emergency in regards to police violence. On Tuesday, the NAACP called for criminal charges to be filed against Thompson. They are also asking for a civil rights investigation by the United States Department of Justice.
Lewis was remembered Friday night at a candlelight vigil in front of Sylvania City Hall.
