City of Atlanta to pay $1M to Rayshard Brooks family

The Atlanta City Council on Monday unanimously voted to approve a $1 million settlement agreement with the family of Rayshard Brooks, a Black man who was fatally shot by a police officer in 2020.

The settlement will end a wrongful death lawsuit brought by Brooks’s estate and widow, Tomika Miller, in September 2021.

The family’s attorneys said in a statement they were pleased to have reached an agreement with the city.

“This grieving family has been through so much during this process. Although the children of Mr. Brooks have lost their father, settling the case will undoubtedly assist them with future plans as they come of age,” the statement read, according to The Associated Press.

The City Council’s 15-0 vote on Monday comes after a special prosecutor said in August authorities would not bring charges against the officers involved in the shooting, arguing the officers acted reasonably and had justification to use deadly force.

The fatal shooting in June 2020 came less than a month after George Floyd was murdered by a now-former Minneapolis police officer, setting off widespread racial justice protests.

Atlanta officers Garrett Rolfe and Devin Brosnan responded to a Wendy’s restaurant on June 12, 2020, for a complaint of a man sleeping in a car in the parking lot.

After a long conversation, the officers attempted to arrest Brooks because they determined he had been drinking too much. Brooks resisted, grabbing a stun gun and firing it at Rolfe as Brooks fled from the scene.

Rolfe shot him twice in the back, an autopsy found. The officer was fired after the incident but reinstated last year after the Atlanta Civil Service Board found the city failed to follow proper disciplinary rules.

Authorities said in August both officers are on administrative duty and will undergo new training and recertification.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.