An Atlanta police officer shot and killed a man who police said had been trying to break into a car in Midtown late Wednesday. The police said the man was shot as he tried to drive away, but they left a question unanswered.
What did Deravis Caine Rogers, 22, do that prompted police to open fire?
Officers may use their service weapons when they believe they or others are in danger of serious injury or death, but it was not known Thursday whether Rogers tried to drive toward the officer. No information was released on whether he was armed.
“I don’t have answers yet to this question as the agents are still working to collect that information,” a GBI spokeswoman told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The GBI is investigating the shooting, a protocol that has been in place for APD since earlier this year.
According to police, an off-duty officer was patrolling the parking lot of a Monroe Drive apartment complex where he lives when he spotted a man trying to break into a car.
The off-duty officer, whose name was not released, called for additional officers and then ran after the suspect, Officer Kim Jones said. But the officer was unable to catch Rogers, who got into a silver car as on-duty officers arrived at the scene, police said. Officers tried to stop Rogers, but he continued driving, Maj. Adam Lee said.
One of the on-duty officers fired on Rogers, hitting him in the head. Rogers drove a short distance before crashing into an SUV parked at the Cirque Daiquiri Bar and Grill. He was taken by ambulance to Grady Memorial Hospital, where he later died, police said.
Rogers, arrested twice in DeKalb in 2014, was convicted of two counts of entering autos and sentenced as a first-time offender last year. twice in DeKalb County in 2014 on entering auto and drug charges, records show. He was convicted in Jan. 2015 and sentenced to three years, according to court records.
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