Chatham County Grand Jury Findings regarding fatal police-involved shooting

8/16/2019 Chatham County Grand Jury Findings regarding fatal police-involved shooting

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NOTICE OF CIVIL INSPECTION AND INVESTIGATION

BY GRAND JURY

IN

THE

SUPERIOR COURT OF CHATHAM COUNTY

STATE OF GEORGIA

In Re:

Investigation

of

Savannah Chatham

Metropolitan

Police Department

Use of

Deadly Force on October 27-28. 2015

Chatham County Grand Jury

Proceedings, March, 2016

Term

GENERAL PRESENTMENT

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Comes now, Sidney

J.

Bolch, IV, Foreperson of the Chatham County Grand Jury for the March, 2016

Term of the Superior Court and makes the following General Presentment:

1.

On March 7, 2016, this Grand Jury was empaneled as provided by law.

2.

Under the provisions ofO.C.G.A.§15-12-71, this Grand Jury is authorized to inspect and investigate the

Savannah Chatham Metropolitan Police Department, a public authority of Chatham County.

3.

On April20, 2016, in accordance with O.C.G.A. § 15-12-71 b) 2), eight

or

more of the members of the

Grand Jury voted that it was necessary to conduct an inspection and investigation of Savannah

Chatham Metropolitan Police Department concerning the fatal shooting of Tyrie Cuyler on or about

October 27, 2015. In accordance thereof the Grand Jury has appointed all of its members to serve as a


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committee to conduct said inspection and investigation.

4

The scope of this inspection and investigation is to examine the use of lethal force used by an officer

officers of the Savannah Chatham Metropolitan Police Department on or about October 27, 2015 during

which Tyrie Cuyler was killed. On May

23, 2016,

the committee heard evidence and hereby makes the

following findings o fact:

a On October 27, 2015 officers Ruben Colon, Daniel Kang, Michael Gonzales and John Hauber

were on duty as Savannah Chatham Metropolitan Police officers. Each were in uniform and

assigned to marked patrol cars conspicuously showing them to be members of Savannah

Chatham Metropolitan Police Department (SCMPD), and

b While acting in the performance of their official duties, officers Colon and Kang observed Tyrie

Cuyler operating a motor vehicle and Cuyer failed to stop completely at a stop sign causing

officer Colon to apply the brakes to his police car to avoid a collision on Ogeechee Road, a

public roadway in Chatham County, Georgia and

c Officer Colon activated the blue lights on his police car to effect a lawful traffic stop and Cuyler

stopped his vehicle on West 36th Street at Ogeechee Road, Chatham County, Georgia, and

d Shortly after the traffic stop was made a few minutes before midnight, officers Gonzales and

Hauber arrived at West

36th

Street and Ogeechee Road to backup officers Colon and Kang, and

e Officer Colon approached Cuyler and was the closest officer to Cuyler. Officer Kang was

standing behind officer Colon. Officer Hauber was on the passenger side

o

Cuyler s vehicle

with a flashlight aimed at the inside of Cuyler s vehicle. Officer Gonzales was standing behind

and to officer Colon s left on the driver side of Cuyler s vehicle, and

f

Cuyler admitted to officer Colon that he did not have his driver s license on his person as


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required by law during the operation of a motor vehicle on the public roads of this state, and

g When officer Colon asked Cuyler to turn his vehicle off, officer Colon noted hesitation by Cuyler

which aroused officer Colon's suspicions and as a result, officer Colon made a lawful request

that Cuyler

get

out of his vehicle, and

h Cuyler hesitated getting out of the vehicle as directed by officer Colon and began reaching

between the driver's seat and passenger's seat. After being told repeatedly by officer Colon not

to reach for anything, Cuyler grabbed a hand gun and quickly exited his vehicle, and

i As Cuyler exited his vehicle, without any provocation whatsoever, he shot officer Colon and

officer Gonzales and thereafter ran from the scene, and

j. The shooting without justification

of

officers Colon and Gonzales constituted the commission of

a violent felony, Aggravated Assault, and as Cuyler fled to avoid arrest, he fired a

rd

round from

his gun, and

k Immediately after shooting officers Colon and Gonzales, officers Colon, Gonzales, and Hauber

justifiably returned fire to prevent Cuyler's escape. Cuyler was struck and killed by police

gunfire, and

I The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) investigated the shooting and their findings showed

as follows:

1

Cuyler was armed with a .38 caliber Smith Wesson revolver which contained 3 spent shell

casings; the handle was wrapped with electrical tape in an apparent attempt to not leave

fingerprints,

2 Inside Cuyler's pocket were 16 individually packed baggies containing cocaine, a schedule II

controlled substance, the possession of which is a felony

3

Cuyler was a two time convicted felon (Possession

of

Cocaine, 2008 and Robbery, 2009)


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which made the possession of a firearm by Cuyler a felony, and

4. Cuyler was arrested on 03-18-15 by the Mcintosh County Sheriff s Department for the Crime

of Possession

o

a Firearm by Convicted Felon, and had been released on bond for that

offense, and

5.

Cuyler had raped a female inside her Savannah West Duffy Street residence on 10-21-15.

That rape was still under investigation on 10-27-15 when Cuyler was killed. However, DNA

evidence and the victim s positive identification of Cuyler following his death established that

Cuyler was her rapist, and

6.

Cuyler had raped another female inside her Savannah East Duffy Street residence

on

08-09-15. Cuyler was linked to this rape by the similarities to the 10-21-15 rape. That rape

was still under investigation on 10-27-15 when Cuyler was killed, and

7.

Officer Colon fired 8 rounds, officer Gonzales fired 6 rounds and officer Hauber fired 5

rounds from their official Glock pistols. Officer Kang did not fire his weapon, and

8.

Examination of the bullets recovered from Cuyler s body at autopsy by a GBI ballistics

expert revealed that the bullets which struck Cuyler could not be identified as coming from a

specific officer s gun - a finding that is not unusual when comparing bullets fired from

Glocks, and

9.

The neighborhood where the shooting occurred was canvassed and numerous residents

were found who heard gunfire but no resident was found who witnessed the shooting, and

10.

Effie Magee, the only civilian witness found, who was returning home from work, witnessed

the shooting and her description was consistent with the description by officers Colon,

Gonzales, Hauber and Kang

m. Items

I)

2-6 above illustrate Cuyler s desperate motivation to use unjustified deadly force


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against police officers to escape his impending arrest, and

n

Officers Colon, Gonzales and Hauber each had their body cameras operating which recorded

the shooting from 3 different angles. Officer Kang s body camera was not activated. The grand

jurors viewed each of the body cam videos from officer Colon, Gonzales and Hauber s body

cameras.

o The committee finds that each officer s use of deadly force to prevent Tyrie Cuyler s escape was

legally justified. {} -w.J

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Respectfully Submitted, this 23rd day of May, 2016


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From

Greg

McConnell

Sent Monday, May 23, 2016 1:15 PM

To Greg

McConnell

Subject

Chief Lumpkin responded as follows to the question, would you like to respond to the Grand

Jury's General Presentment :

No I would just thank the Grand Jury and the District Attorney s Office or ensuring we all adhere to the

State o Georgia s laws.

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE smartphone


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Chatham County Courthouse

133

Montgomery Street

Suite 600

Post Office Box 2309

Savannah Georgia 31402

DISTRICT ATTORNEY

EASTERN JUDICIAL CIRCUIT OF GEORGIA

M G

HEAP

NOTICE OF CIVIL INSPECTION AND INVESTIGATION

BY

GRAND

JURY

IN THE SUPERIOR

COURT

OF

CHATHAM

COUNTY

STATE OF GEORGIA

In

Re: Investigation

of

Savannah Chatham

Metropolitan

Police Department

Use of

Deadly Force on October 27-28, 2015


Proceedings, March, 2016

Term

TO:

Hon. Joseph Lumpkin, Chief

Savannah Chatham

Metropolitan

Police

epartment

NOTICE OF

CIVIL INSPECTION AND INVESTIGATION

Comes now, Sidney

J.

Bolch,

IV

Fore person

of the


for

the

March, 2016

Term

of

the

Superior Court and shows:

1.

On

March

7

2016, this Grand Jury was empaneled as provided by law.

2

Under

the

provisions

of

O.C.G.A.§15-12-71, this Grand Jury is authorized to inspect and investigate

the

Savannah Chatham

Metropolitan

Police Department , a public

authority

of Chatham County.

3

On

April 20, 2016, in accordance

with

O.C.G.A. § 15-12-71 b) 2), eight

or more of the

members

of the


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Grand Jury voted

that

it was necessary

to

conduct an inspection and investigation

of

Savannah Chatham

Metropoli tan Police Department concerning the fatal shooting of yrie Cuyler on or about October

27

2015.

In accordance

thereof

the Grand Jury

has

appointed all of its members to serve

as

a committee to

conduct

said

inspection and investigation.

4.

The scope

of

this inspection and investigation

is to

examine the

use of

lethal force used by

an

officer

I

officers

ofthe

Savannah Chatham Metropolitan Police Department on or about October

27 2015

during

which Tyrie Cuyler was killed. It

is

the intent

of

this Grand Jury

to

conduct a full and fair inspection and

investigation in this matter in accordance with all applicable laws.

5.

The

Grand Jury has requested that the District Attorney meet with you on May

23 2016

and from day to

day thereaf ter in the Grand Jury room in the Chatham County Courthouse to begin the inspection and

investigation.

6.

You

will

be

provided the

opportunity

to

appear before the Grand Jury and

to

testify, under oath

concerning this matter. In addition, you will

be

afforded the

opportunity to

review the findings and

conclusions

ofthe

Grand Jury prior

to

their submission

as

a General Presentment

to

the Superior Court

and to submit any response which you may wish to make to the Grand Jury's findings and

recommendations. Any response which you submit will be appended to the General Presentment which

the Grand Jury submits

for

publication in accordance

with O C G A

§§ 15-12-71 (b) 3) and 15-12-80.

Respectfully Submitted, this 20th day of April, 2016


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CERTIFICATE OF

SERVICE

This is to certify that I have this date served the below-named individual

with

a copy

of

the above

NOTICE OF CIVIL INSPECTION ND INVESTIG TION BY GR ND

JURY

by:

XX depositing same in the United States Mail in a properly addressed envelope

with

sufficient

postage thereon to:

Joseph Lumpkin, Chief

Savannah Chatham etropolitan Police Department

201 Habersham St

Savannah,

GA

31401

This

2 th

day of April, 2016.

i£;J L__

Legal

Assistant IV

District Attorney s Office, E J C

Office

of

District Attorney

Eastern Judicial Circuit

PO

Box 2309

Savannah, GA 31402

912 652 7308


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Documents

Chatham County Grand Jury Findings regarding fatal police-involved shooting