Two Atlanta police officers were fired for using excessive force during a protest.
Two Atlanta police officers were fired on Sunday, one day after videos emerged showing them using stun guns on two black college students and then dragging them out of their car.
Atlanta’s mayor, Keisha Lance Bottoms, announced the dismissal of the two officers, whom she did not name, during a news conference on Sunday. She said their actions had constituted “excessive force.”
Ms. Bottoms said three other officers who were involved in the arrests had been reassigned to desk duty while the department reviews their actions.
“It was disturbing on many levels, the least of not which was that there clearly was an excessive use of force,” Ms. Bottoms said. “We understand that our officers are working very long hours under an enormous amount of stress, but we also understand that the use of excessive force is never acceptable.”
Ms. Bottoms said she had reviewed police body camera footage of the confrontation and that it should be released immediately. The episode was broadcast live on local television on Saturday night, showing a group of officers stopping a man and woman in their car near downtown Atlanta roughly 45 minutes after a curfew went into effect at 9 p.m. It was unclear what prompted the police to stop the car.
The actions of the Atlanta officers came amid intensifying scrutiny of how law enforcement was responding to demonstrators.
Chief Erika Shields of the Atlanta Police Department condemned the actions of the officers, saying that the two students had been “manhandled” and that the episode had only underscored the fear and wariness minorities have of the police.
“I am genuinely sorry,” Chief Shields said. “This is not who we are. This is not what we’re about.”
Nationwide demonstrations resume, officials in several states reinforce their National Guard presence and anger mounts at increasingly aggressive tactics by the police.
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