Mary Ann Sherman says her older son was the victim, not the perpetrator. But that's now how he was treated by Coweta County deputies and an EMT.
Instead, Chase Sherman was handcuffed, Tased multiple times and held down on the floorboard of a rental car. Within minutes, he was unresponsive and died.
On Nov. 20, Chase Sherman was having a paranoia attack, believing that his parents and girlfriend were trying to kidnap him as the four traveled south on I-85 to their Florida home. He tried to get out of the car and was becoming violent. The family, fearing Chase would hurt himself or them, pulled the car over to the median in Coweta County, and Mary Ann placed the emergency call.
"We thought we were doing the right thing at the time," Mary Ann Sherman said during an interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Wednesday. "I wish we had never called 911."
The 32-year-old died during the altercation. An autopsy determined the deadly combination of repeated Taser shocks and an EMT’s body weight caused Chase Sherman’s heart rate to increase and restricted his ability to breathe.
Since his death, Sherman's family awaited the results of a GBI investigation that was later sent to District Attorney Pete Skandalakis, along with videos from the deputies' cameras. On Monday, Skandalakis announced the case would not be presented to a grand jury, meaning no one would be held responsible.
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