COBB COUNTY, Ga. — A federal civil suit in the police shooting death of 17-year-old Vincent Truitt was dismissed this week.
Truitt was shot by a Cobb County Police officer at the end of a chase in July 2020. Police had been pursuing a stolen car he was a passenger in. A Cobb County grand jury ruled the shooting justified in Feb. 2021 and declined to bring charges against the officer involved.
At the time the $150 million suit was announced, attorneys for Truitt's family described it as the largest in Georgia history in a police shooting case.
District Judge J. P. Boulee dismissed the suit, which alleged Fourth Amendment violations, on qualified immunity grounds. Attorneys for Truitt's family said they will "continue to fight for justice" and are still exploring possible claims under state law.
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The police narrative contended Truitt had "brandished" a weapon as he ran out of the car. According to the ruling, police bodycam showed a "dark handgun very close to where (Truitt) fell" after being shot.
His family and attorneys said the bodycam video showed he was running with his back to the officer, never pointing anything at him or even turning back toward him, and clearly was not a threat.
The lawsuit argued Truitt "posed no danger" to the officer who fired on him.
Judge Boulee wrote, "The Court disagrees," in his dismissal, citing that Truitt had the gun in hand at the time he was shot and "could have decided to use the gun at any point." The teen "had also been a participant in a high-speed car chase" and the judge determined "these facts show that (Truitt) would have appeared to a reasonable police officer to be gravely dangerous."
His ruling cited the bodycam video showing Truitt ask, "why did you shoot me?" and the officer responding, "because you pulled a gun on me."
Judge Boulee also addressed the fact that the officer did not give a warning before firing. He wrote that three seconds passed between the start of the chase and the officer shooting Truitt, and that "given this extremely brief period of time, the Court finds that it was not feasible for (the officer) to issue a warning before shooting (Truitt)."
The judge wrote the use of force "was objectively reasonable under the Fourth Amendment."
In a statement, the County Attorney for Cobb County, H. William Rowling Jr. said, "Since first being made aware of this officer-involved shooting in the summer of 2020, we have remained unwavering in our belief that the shooting, though unfortunate, was legally justified."
Gerald A. Griggs, the Georgia NAACP President and attorney for Truitt's family in this case, said their legal team was "reviewing all available legal options."
"On behalf of my clients the family of Vincent Truitt, we are disappointed by the decision of the Federal Court dismissing the civil action against Cobb County in Federal Court," Griggs said in a statement. "We respectfully disagree with the decision of the Judge and are evaluating the next legal options available including possible state law claims. The family will continue to fight for Justice for Vincent Demario Truitt."
The lawsuit had been brought on behalf of Truitt's mother, Venethia Cook. After his death two years ago, she described her son as an adored older sibling and star-athlete with an interest in fashion and design.
She said he had "never been a violent person with "no violent history whatsoever" and asked "since when did running away become a death sentence?"
The Cobb County Police Department at the time said that it "recognizes that the loss of any and all life is tragic" but that the evidence would show the shooting was justified.
"We were pleased to find out today that the federal court agreed with our position," the county attorney, Rowling, said.
Read the full ruling below