The family of an unarmed man fatally shot by an Atlanta-area police officer has filed a federal wrongful death lawsuit against the DeKalb County police department, officer Robert Olsen, the county and its board of commissioners.
A spokesman for the police department did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment. County attorney OV Brantley said she doesn’t comment on pending litigation.
Olsen shot Anthony Hill on 9 March while responding to a call of a man behaving erratically outside a suburban Atlanta apartment complex. Hill was a 27-year-old US air force veteran who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. His girlfriend later told the Guardian he was forced to self-medicate with marijuana when treatment was unavailable through the Atlanta VA medical center.
DeKalb county district attorney Robert James is considering whether to present the case to a grand jury for indictment. Olson was put on administrative leave after the shooting, and the Georgia bureau of investigation has been looking into the shooting.
Hill’s mother, Carolyn Giummo, says officers must held accountable, and she hopes the lawsuit will prompt change in police training.
