THE STORY SO FAR
Earlier: A former Atlanta police officer was charged with murder after shooting at the driver of a car when he responded to a call at an apartment complex.
The latest: The former officer was scheduled to bond out of jail after a hearing Thursday.
What’s next: A preliminary hearing is set for Aug. 1.
The former Atlanta police officer jailed for murder in a controversial police shooting of an unarmed man was scheduled to be released on bond after a court hearing Thursday in which his lawyer began to lay the legal arguments for his defense.
Officer James R. Burns was not in the Fulton County courtroom, but his defense attorney Drew Findling said his client feared for his life when he made a split-second decision to shoot Deravis Caine Rogers on the night of June 22. Findling painted Burns as a rookie cop, who at age 34, had a non-traditional path into policing.
Rogers’ father, Deravis Thomas, also attended the bond hearing at the Fulton County Courthouse, accompanied by several supporters. He left the hearing without making a statement.
Reached later, Thomas said: “Ex-officer James Burns is not the first murderer to get a bond. He won’t be the last murderer to get a bond. I understand this is part of the judicial process — on to the next phase.”
The case against Burns, who is also charged with aggravated assault and violation of his oath of office, comes as Atlanta’s police leaders cope with protests over several high-profile police shootings of black men, and pointed questions about policing in minority communities.
Burns, who is white, shot Rogers even though he did not know at the time if the 22-year-old black man was a suspect in any crime, according to an internal affairs investigation that resulted in his firing on July 1.
Burns had been on the force for nearly two years when, on June 22, he responded to a call to backup an off-duty officer who’d spotted a suspicious person at an apartment complex in northeast Atlanta. As Burns drove into the complex, he spotted a vehicle’s headlights turn on and start to drive towards his car. Rogers was behind the wheel, but he didn’t stop when Burns flashed his blue lights. Rogers kept driving and that’s when Burns shot him.
The Atlanta police department's internal affairs investigation determined that Burns was not reasonably in fear for his life, and ruled the shooting an unnecessary and excessive use of force.
Defense takes shape
Findling signaled that he planned to make Rogers’ failure to stop a key part of Burns’ defense. He also indicated that he intended to make Rogers’ criminal history an issue in the case, including a conviction for breaking into a car in DeKalb County.
“All officer Burns did was angle his car, get out and ask the person to stop,” he said. “We would not be here today had the vehicle stopped…That is a significant issue why somebody wouldn’t stop. I would stop and everybody here would stop. But that vehicle did not stop.”
Burns told investigators that he fired because the car tried to run him over, but APD investigators and the Fulton County District Attorney’s office reached a different conclusion.
“He lied by saying Mr. Rogers car drove towards him, which is contrary to the evidence uncovered by the (APD) investigation and uncovered by our investigation,” said Melissa D. Redmon, the director of the public integrity unit for the Fulton DA’s office.
Redmon objected to Findling’s effort to introduce Rogers’ criminal record and said Burns is the one to blame for what happened that night.
“Pulling out of a parking space does not warrant being shot in the back of the head,” Redmon said. “He didn’t know who was in the car. Mr. Rogers is not going to be on trial, is not on trial. He was doing nothing wrong.”
In an unprecedented move in police shootings, Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard charged Burns July 15 before taking his case to a grand jury.
Findling said his arrest was premature and that the investigators reached hasty conclusions about his client. While acknowledging there has “been craziness going on in our country” with police shootings, Findling cautioned against trying to link the facts in this case to so many others across the country that have stirred protests.
“This case is very distinguished from others,” he said.
Humanitarian work in Africa
Findling disclosed several new details about his client.
Burns is a lifelong resident of metro Atlanta and a graduate of Woodward Academy. He went into humanitarian work in Africa and Asia after graduating from college. When he returned to his hometown a few years ago, Findling said, Burns entered policing as a natural outgrowth of his overseas work.
He was married in March. His wife, Lindsey Kirshner Burns, and his father, Richard Burns, attended Thursday’s hearing.
Findling said other officers have stood by Burns and support him as “good solid officer” who is “an upstanding man and an upstanding officer.”
Fulton Magistrate Court Judge Karen Smith Woodson set Burns’ bond at $240,000 with stipulations that Burns give up his passport and not have any contact with Rogers’ family.
Burns has a preliminary hearing scheduled for Aug. 1, and Howard said he plans to bring the case to a grand jury in early August.
About the Author
