A naked man was shot and killed in Atlanta, Georgia on Monday, March 9, by a DeKalb County police officer.
Residents in an apartment complex called police to investigate a naked man “crawling around on the ground naked” and “acting deranged.” DeKalb County Police Chief Cedric Alexander said that there was no weapon found at the scene and suggested that the victim possibly suffered from mental illness.
The victim has been identified by the local media and The New York Times as 27-year-old Anthony Hill, a veteran of the US Air Force.
DeKalb County Police Officer Robert Olsen has been identified as the officer who fired the shots at Hill. He has been on the Police force for seven years and has currently been placed on administrative leave.
“The officer was in possession of a non-lethal Taser, according to [DeKalb County Police Chief Cedric Alexander], who also noted that the officer attempted to provide emergency aid to the man,” according to BBC.
Many question the officer on his automatic response to use his gun instead of a non-lethal weapon as the man clearly was unarmed.
“That’s becoming more and more apparent,” Alexander said. “We have already, as many departments have begun to do, look at how to expand our mental health training when we find it certainly necessary to do so. Because it appears that we’re seeing more and more of these cases across the country in which police are engaging with those who appear to be in distress.”
It’s not clear what allegedly set him off Monday, witnesses said. “The man, he was like drugged, but he was naked, and he was crawling,” neighbor Oscar Perez told NBC affiliate WXIA. “I think the police officer thought he was going to attack, so he shot him.”
One of Hill’s family members mentioned to The Times that, as a veteran of the US Air Force, Hill sought treatment from the Veteran’s Administration. Harrietta Jones said to BBC, “To my understanding he was having some difficulties with the medication that he was on.”
“If you look at the state in this country and the things we’re going through right now across this country with police-involved shooting, certainly it’s a concern to many Americans. And there has certainly been recommendations that have been made in regards to moving towards more independent type of investigations,” Alexander told CNN.
The case is currently under investigation by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
