Police Footage Shows An Officer In Atlanta Using A Taser On A Church Deacon Who Said He Couldn’t Breathe. An Atlanta police officer, Kiran Kimbrough, was fired after a minor car crash in which he deployed a Taser on a church deacon who disregarded multiple commands to sign a traffic ticket.
Police Footage Shows An Officer In Atlanta Using A Taser On A Church Deacon Who Said He Couldn’t Breathe. The video released shows Hollman Sr. becoming unresponsive during his arrest and later died.
An autopsy determined the 62-year-old’s death was a homicide, with heart disease also a contributing factor. His family has called on prosecutors to charge Officer Kimbrough with murder.
The roughly hour-long video shows Kimbrough arriving at the scene of the crash and gathering information from Hollman, the other driver, and a passenger before the confrontation.
Hollman was driving home from Bible study at his daughter’s house and bringing dinner to his wife when he collided with another vehicle while turning across a busy street just west of downtown Atlanta.
In the video, Hollman repeatedly insists the other driver hit him, but otherwise follows Kimbrough’s orders to move his car and stay by it. The encounter escalates after Kimbrough tells Hollman he failed to turn his white Chevrolet Silverado pickup correctly and was at fault for the crash.
Hollman immediately begins protesting, saying repeatedly, “I didn’t do anything.” Kimbrough tells Hollman he can contest the finding in court, but he needs to sign the citation. He also accuses Hollman of screaming and repeatedly warns him that he will be jailed if he doesn’t sign.
Kimbrough’s attorney Lance LoRusso said that before the officer arrived, the other parties in the collision called 911 to report Hollman was disorderly and they were concerned for their safety.
“Mr. Hollman violently and unlawfully resisted Officer Kimbrough’s lawful efforts to arrest him,” LoRusso said. “The Atlanta Police investigation confirmed Officer Kimbrough deployed his city-issued TASER and used force in a manner consistent with his training and Georgia law.”
In the video, Hollman says he will sign the ticket after Kimbrough steps closer to him. Kimbrough’s body camera gets blocked, obscuring exactly what happens next, but the two men begin to struggle.
Kimbrough demands Hollman’s arm, but Hollman says his right arm hurts. Within seconds, Hollman is on the ground, saying he didn’t do anything and asking the officer why he’s doing this. Kimbrough yells at him to sign the ticket and says he is going to use his Taser on him.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation has completed its inquiry into Hollman’s death and handed over its investigative file to Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who will decide whether to seek charges.
The district attorney’s office investigation is ongoing, and it’s not clear when that decision will be made. Hollman’s daughter, Arnitra Hollman, said she’s grateful to Willis for releasing the video, but that’s only the first step. “Now moving forward, we need him jailed,” she said of Kimbrough.
