In a defense filing for former Atlanta Police Officer Garrett Rolfe, who has been charged with felony murder in the Rayshard Brooks case, the Atlanta Police Department homicide detective assigned to the case, Al Hogan, sided with Rolfe, noting that he would have brought 10 charges against Brooks had he survived the incident.
“Atlanta PD detective assigned to the [Rayshard Brooks] investigation says he would have charged Brooks — not Rolfe — with 10 counts, including multiple felonies,” posted Philip Holloway, a legal analyst for WSB Radio (post below). Captioning a screenshot of Hogan’s letter, Holloway noted: “Usually law enforcement are witnesses for the state but this is from a defense filing.”
Mr. Hogan was assigned the Brooks case and arrived on scene shortly after the incident, he explains in the letter.
“I am the Homicide/MIT (Major Incident Team) investigator that was assigned the case involving Officers Rolfe and [Devin] Bronson regarding their interaction with Rashard (sic) Brooks,” the detective wrote in the letter, which consistently misspells Brooks’ first name.
“I was calling in from my home shortly after the incident occurred and began my investigation upon my arrival to the scene,” Hogan continued. “I gathered all the audio and video evidence as well as interviewed witnesses that would speak with me on scene.”
“My investigation showed that [Rayshard] Brooks’s behavior did in fact warrant several federal charges, but before I was able to pursue those charges, I was informed that [Rayshard] Brooks had died, negating the necessity for that portion of my investigation,” he added.
Hogan then lays out ten charges he says he would have sought against Brooks:
- DUI/DUI Less Safe, a violation of OCGA 40-6-391
- Felony Obstruction, Two counts, a violation of OCGA 16-10-24
- Aggravated Assault against a Police Officer, Two Counts, a violation of OCGA 16-5-21
- Battery against a Police Officer, Two counts, a violation of OCGA 16-5-23.1
- Theft by Taking, a violation of OCGA 16-8-2
- Removal of Weapon from a Public Official, a violation of 16-10-33
- Robbery, a violation of OCGA 16-8-40.1
As reported by AJC, attorneys for the former officer, Noah Pines and Bill Thomas, have filed a motion seeking reasonable bond for their client. Pines and Thomas maintain in the motion that if Rolfe had reason to believe Brooks committed a crime involving the “infliction” or “threatened infliction” of “serious physical harm,” he was justified in using deadly force.
“In his struggle to evade arrest and revocation 0f his probation, Mr. Brooks concussed Officer Brosnan, stole his Taser, shot him with the Taser, fled with the Taser and then pointed and fired the Taser at Officer Rolfe,” the motion states.
READ IT: #AtlantaPD detective assigned to the #RayshardBrooks investigation says he would have charged Brooks – not Rolfe – with 10 counts, including multiple felonies. Usually law enforcement are witnesses for the state but this is from a defense filing. pic.twitter.com/huj903b7Tu
— Philip Holloway ⚖️✈️ (@PhilHollowayEsq) June 29, 2020
This piece originally incorrectly stated that Philip Holloway is a legal analyst for CNN; he has not been with the network since 2016.
Related: Former Atlanta Officer Charged With Felony Murder In Shooting Of Rayshard Brooks
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