SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) - The Latest on the January fatal shooting of a 20-year-old man by police in Savannah, Georgia (all times local):
12:30 p.m.
The lawyer for the family of a 20-year-old man shot to death by police in Savannah, Georgia, in January is criticizing authorities’ handling of information in the case.
A grand jury report released Wednesday concluded that Ricky Boyd pointed a BB pistol at officers, and it appeared to be a real gun.
Boyd’s family has insisted he was unarmed. Family lawyer Will Claiborne has expressed disappointment in the grand jury’s findings.
Claiborne said Thursday that U.S. Marshals should wear body cameras. He also said there needs to be a clear policy governing the release of information in police-involved shootings.
He said releasing information piecemeal and providing it to news outlets before giving it to the family doesn’t inspire community trust.
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11:30 a.m.
A Georgia police chief said the evidence shows officers acted professionally and appropriately when they fatally shot a 20-year-old man they had gone to arrest in January.
A grand jury report released Wednesday concluded that Ricky Boyd pointed a BB pistol at officers, and it appeared to be a real gun.
Boyd’s family has insisted he was unarmed.
Savannah police chief Mark Revenew told reporters Thursday that he has had to remain silent during the investigation and presentation to the grand jury.
Revenew said that since the shooting, the public has been “subjected to a one-sided, calculated campaign of misinformation.” Now that the process is done and the evidence is being released, he urged members of the public to objectively review all the evidence and witness statements for themselves.
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11:15 p.m.
A grand jury in Savannah, Georgia, has determined police were justified in fatally shooting a 20-year-old man they had come to arrest in January.
The grand jury report concludes Ricky Boyd pointed a BB pistol at officers, and it appeared to be a real gun. His family insists he was unarmed. Boyd’s mother says she’s seen the body-camera video, and she says it shows her son with his arms raised and no weapon in his hands.
Chatham County District Attorney Meg Heap presented the Georgia Bureau of Investigation findings to the grand jury, which issued its nine-page report Wednesday. The jury decided the evidence did not support pursuing criminal charges against the officers.
The Boyd family’s lawyer has urged federal authorities to investigate Boyd’s shooting as a violation of his civil rights.
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