© Photo courtesy of Cobb County sheriff's officeNicholas Thomas
A grand jury says it won't press charges against a police officer who shot a man outside a tire store in Atlanta. Sergeant Kenneth Owens killed Nicholas Thomas as he allegedly drove a customer's car towards officers after they tried arrest him.
Thomas died from a single gunshot to his upper back on his right side on March 24, as he drove a car towards the police officers, who were trying to serve him with a parole violation.
Cobb County District Attorney Vic Reynolds said in a statement that he had sympathies with Thomas's family and called the loss of life "unfortunate." However, he understood why the officers took the course of action outside the Goodyear tire store.
© Photo courtesy of Smyrna Police DeptSmyrna Police Sgt. Kenneth Owens
"But when he drove the vehicle toward officers in the manner he did, the officer who fired the shots was justified under the law to use lethal force," the statement says, as cited by AP. "Police officers in Georgia are authorized to fire their weapons to protect themselves or others from immediate bodily harm. That is what happened in this case."
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the Cobb County Police Department had both said the shooting was "justified under the facts and the law." Owens was initially placed on administrative leave, while police say that he returned to administrative work in May.
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