Atlanta police call out sick over charges in fatal shooting

"But we are there to assure them that we will continue to move forward and get through this." Prosecutors brought felony murder and other charges against Garrett Rolfe, a white officer who shot Rayshard Brooks after the 27-year-old black man grabbed a Taser during a struggle and ran, firing it at the officer, Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard said.

Atlanta police officers called out sick to protest the filing of murder charges against an officer who shot a man in the back, while the interim chief acknowledged members of the force feel abandoned amid protests demanding massive changes to policing. Interim Chief Rodney Bryant told The Associated Press in an interview that the sick calls began Wednesday night and continued Thursday, but said the department had sufficient staff to protect the city. It's not clear how many officers called out.

"Some are angry. Some are fearful. Some are confused about what we do in this space. Some may feel abandoned," Bryant said of the officers. "But we are there to assure them that we will continue to move forward and get through this." Prosecutors brought felony murder and other charges against Garrett Rolfe, a white officer who shot Rayshard Brooks after the 27-year-old black man grabbed a Taser during a struggle and ran, firing it at the officer, Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard said. Four months before Brooks was killed, Reconnect, a company that focuses on fighting incarceration and addiction, interviewed him about the year he spent in jail. He said the criminal justice system treats the people incarcerated within like "animals." "Some of the systems could, you know, look at us as individuals," Brooks said. "We do have lives, you know, we're just a mistake we made." He said having a record hindered the formerly incarcerated from trying to "provide for ourselves as far as getting a job and getting ourselves back on track." Howard said Brooks was not a deadly threat at the time and that Rolfe kicked the wounded man and offered no medical treatment for over two minutes as Brooks lay dying. Another officer, Devin Brosnan, who the district attorney said stood on Brooks' shoulder as he struggled for his life, was charged with aggravated assault and violation of his oath.

Rolfe and Brosnan both contend their actions were justified and turned themselves on Thursday. Jail records show Brosnan was released on a signature bond, meaning he only has to pay if he fails to show up for court, while Rolfe was being held without bond. Rolfe was fired and Brosnan placed on desk duty. A few hours after reporting to the Fulton County jail in Atlanta, Rolfe was moved to the jail in neighboring Gwinnett County, according to online records.

The decision to prosecute the officers came less than five days after the killing rocked a city - and a nation - still reeling after George Floyd's death at the hands of police in Minneapolis set off nationwide protests that have urged an extensive rethink of policing and an examination of racism in the United States. L Chris Stewart, a lawyer for Tomika Miller, Brooks' widow, told reporters the charging of the officers brought the family no joy.

"Some people thought that we'd be happy and be celebrating and have a fist in the air, but it's more a disappointment that this is the state of policing and this is where we're at," he said. In his video interview with Reconnect, Brooks, a father, promised to "keep going until I make it to where I want to be." Bryant, who took over after the previous chief resigned in the wake of the shooting, wore a navy blue shirt Thursday, rather than the white shirt was typically worn by command staff, to show solidarity with the officers.

In the roughly three weeks since protests first broke out in Georgia's capital, officers have worked shifts of 12 or more hours and have been yelled at, spit on, and had things thrown at them, Bryant said. "At some point, people get tired, I recognize that, and physically exhausted," he said. "We will definitely get beyond it, and I'm certain that we will see our sick-outs drop back to normal, average." The weeks since Floyd's killing have seen lawmakers pass police reforms, Americans reconsider statues commemorating controversial figures, and ideas like defunding police become part of the national conversation. But the drive for change has also drawn pushback, and divisions over the role police should play are becoming a major political flashpoint.

Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, a Republican, issued a strong message of support for police on Thursday. "We remember those who died in the line of duty and their families, who still mourn their passing," he said in a video his office posted to social media.

While some have hailed the prosecutor's office for moving quickly in the Brooks killing, Bryant said he was surprised at the speed, noting that the Georgia Bureau of Investigation hadn't yet finished its probe. He would not say how many officers called out. But just one officer showed up for work Thursday morning in one zone, which several dozen are assigned to patrol, according to Vince Champion, southeast regional director for the International Brotherhood of Police Officers.

Atlanta officers are walking off their shifts or not responding to calls because they feel "abandoned, betrayed, used in a political game," Champion told the AP. Champion said he's heard from several officers that they fear using force to protect themselves will get them fired or arrested.

Brooks' funeral is set for Tuesday at Atlanta's historic Ebenezer Baptist Church, which was the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr's congregation, the Rev. Raphael Warnock announced. Tyler Perry, the actor, and filmmaker has offered financial help for the services, officials said.