The family of the man shot and killed this week by a Douglas County sheriff's deputy is disputing authorities' account of the incident, saying through an attorney that "at no point did [he] ever point a weapon at any officer."
Bobby Daniels, 48, died during the convoluted incident Monday night on Midway Road in Douglasville. According to local authorities and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, deputies responded to the scene after getting a 911 call from a man saying he had escaped from kidnappers. They were directed to the next street over, where Bias Daniels, the son of Bobby, was allegedly holding a gun near a dark SUV.
Bias Daniels, 25, was told to drop the gun and he did, authorities said, prompting his father to get out of another nearby car and grab the weapon. Bobby and Bias then fought over the gun, the GBI said.
A deputy fired a Taser at Bias but it didn’t attach.
“As the fight continued between Bias and Bobby, the handgun was pointed at the deputies, at which point one of the deputies fired, striking and killing Bobby,” the GBI said in an emailed statement.
Douglas County Sheriff Phil Miller later admitted Bobby Daniels may have been trying to keep the gun away from his son when he was shot.
In a statement issued Wednesday through Atlanta law firm Stewart, Seay & Felton, the Daniels family said that was indeed the case — but disputed assertions that the weapon was ever pointed at deputies.
“Daniels was restraining his son and trying to protect members of law enforcement who were responding to a situation involving Daniels’ son when he was shot at a distance by a deputy with an AR-15,” the statement said. “The family disputes the account being presented by the Douglas County Sheriff’s Department and the GBI. According to witnesses, at no point did Bobby Daniels ever point any weapon at any officer, contrary to what law enforcement has stated.”
The statement said Bobby Daniels was a veteran of the United States Navy and father of five who worked as a security guard at Turner/CNN.
The family has hired attorney L. Chris Stewart and plans to hold a press conference at 1 p.m. Wednesday in Atlanta. Stewart has previously represented the family of Walter Scott, the unarmed man shot in the back in a controversial case in North Charleston, S.C.
Bias Daniels allegedly picked up the gun when his father dropped it and ran, and a deputy fired at him but missed. He was caught a short time later at a nearby mobile home park and arrested on charges including aggravated assault, obstruction and marijuana possession.
