Johnny Hollman called 911 after he was in a minor traffic accident. But instead of helping, the responding officer beat and tased Hollman after he was hesitant to sign a ticket, resulting in the 62-year-old's death.
Hollman's family sued, and they've now been awarded a $3.8 million settlement.
"While nothing can undo what has been done," Atlanta mayor Andre Dickens said in a statement this week, "my priority was to get this family as close to full closure from this unfortunate tragedy as soon as possible."
During the evening of August 10th, 2023, Hollman was driving home when he was involved in a low-speed collision with another vehicle. According to Hollman's family's lawsuit, both Hollman and the other driver called 911 to report the accident. While no one was injured, both drivers disputed who was at fault for the accident.
After more than an hour, Atlanta Police Department Officer Kiran Kimbrough arrived on the scene. Soon after, he decided that Hollman was at fault and wrote him a citation.
However, Hollman was hesitant to sign the citation. "Deacon Hollman did not explicitly refuse to sign the citation," the suit states. (Hollman was a Deacon at his local church). "But in each instance when directed to do so, responded that the collision was not his fault."
Eventually, Kimbrough threatened to send Hollman to jail unless he signed the ticket, and Hollman called one of his daughters.
According to the suit, Kimbrough then began walking towards Hollman. Almost simultaneously, Kimbrough reached to grab one of Hollman's arms, and Hollman said "I'll sign the ticket."
Hollman said several more times that he would sign the ticket. However, "ignoring Deacon Hollman's concession to his request that he sign the ticket, Defendant Kimbrough performed a leg sweep maneuver on Deacon Hollman, taking Deacon Hollman to the ground," the suit states. "While doing so, Defendant Kimbrough commented to Deacon Hollman: 'You acting crazy!'"
Over the next several minutes, Kimbrough struck the back of Hollman's head at least twice with his fist, tased him twice, and allowed another citizen to "assist" him by sitting on Hollman's head and neck, while ignoring Hollman's frequent statements that he couldn't breathe.
Eventually, Hollman was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. An autopsy later concluded that the cause of Hollman's death was homicide.
Following the incident, the Atlanta Police Department revised its policies to prohibit arresting an individual solely for refusing to sign a ticket, and Kimborough was fired.
Hollman's family filed a lawsuit against Kimbrough and the City of Atlanta in January. This week, they were awarded a $3.8 million settlement in the case.
"We recognize this, not just as a victory for their family," Mawuli Davis, one of Hollman's family's attorneys told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Monday. "But really an acknowledgment of the importance of community in these fights for justice."
The post An Atlanta Cop Killed This Man For Refusing To Sign a Ticket appeared first on Reason.com.
