US city police chief resigns over black man shooting

The Police Chief of Atlanta city in Georgia, USA, has resigned after the fatal shooting of an African-American who had fallen asleep in his car at a drive-through restaurant.

Rayshard Brooks, 27, was shot by a police officer during a struggle on Friday evening, authorities say.

Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said Erika Shields handed in her resignation on Saturday.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigations (GBI) is probing the death of Brooks and is looking at video from a security camera inside the Wendy's restaurant and also eyewitness footage.

It says police had been called to the restaurant because Brooks had fallen asleep in his car, which was blocking the drive-through lane.

According to police, Brooks resisted arrest after he failed a breathalyzer test.

A report from the GBI said footage captured from inside the Wendy's restaurant shows officers chasing Brooks before he turns and points a Taser at an officer.

"The officer then fired his weapon, striking Brooks," the report said.

In the eyewitness video, Brooks can be seen on the ground outside the Wendy's restaurant, struggling with two police officers.

He grabs an officer's Taser and breaks free from the officers, running away. The other officer then manages to use a Taser on Brooks and both officers then run out of the frame of the video.

Gunshots can then be heard and Brooks is seen on the ground.

He was taken to hospital but later died. One of the officers was treated for an injury from the incident.

Protesters in Atlanta took to the streets this weekend calling for action following Brooks' death.

On Saturday evening, demonstrators closed down a major highway, Interstate-75, in Atlanta. The Wendy's restaurant outside which Brooks died was also set on fire.

Over the past three weeks, people across the US have already been protesting over the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man in police custody.

Erika Shields had served as police chief since December 2016 and had worked in the Atlanta police department for more than 20 years. She will continue with the department in another role, Mayor Bottoms said.

"Because of her desire that Atlanta be a model of what meaningful reform should look like across this country Chief Shields has offered to immediately step aside as Police Chief so that the city may move forward with urgency and rebuilding the trust so desperately needed throughout our communities," Mayor Bottoms said in a statement.

Mayor Bottoms has also called for the sacking of the officer involved in Brooks' death.

(Source: BBC)