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No charges will be filed against ICE officer who shot, killed man in Walmart parking lot

Douglas County officials said the officer 'faced a reasonable threat' and feared for his family’s safety when he fired on a man who appeared to follow them into the parking lot.

DOUGLAS COUNTY, Ga. — No charges will be filed against an off-duty ICE officer who shot and killed a man in a Walmart parking lot in Douglas County, according to the district attorney and law enforcement officials.

Forty-five-year-old Johnathan Liddell, of Austell, was shot in the chest after pulling into a parking spot next to the ICE officer, 38-year-old Othello Jones.

On Monday, Douglas County officials released Walmart surveillance video of the shooting and played 911 calls placed by Jones’ wife after the shooting – which police said happened in front of her and their three children.

"This was a justified shooting ... nothing that he did is criminal. I don't see any charges coming forward from this jurisdiction and I'm not aware of any others as it pertains to this event," said Douglas County District Attorney Ryan Leonard. 

MORE | One person shot and killed at Lithia Springs Walmart store 

Douglas County officials released Walmart surveillance video and played 911 calls placed by Jones’ wife after the shooting – which police said happened in front of her and their three children.

“In this case, the loss of Mr. Liddell’s life is tragic. However, it’s also tragic that Mr. Jones was placed in a situation where he had to take someone’s life in front of his family,” Leonard said. “The vehicle next to Mr. Liddell’s (car) was Jones’ wife and three kids – the youngest was five years old. Their lives have changed forever, and it’s tragic on both sides.

The Jones family was leaving church and were preparing to go shopping at Walmart when they were stopped behind Liddell’s car on Thornton Road, Leonard said. Liddell was allegedly stopped in the middle of the roadway for at least two minutes before Jones could pull around him. As he did so, Jones’ wife said Liddell appeared to be concealing his identity under a grey hoodie, Leonard said.

“The wife looked and saw the hoodie and it appeared he was hiding something. She thought it was ominous and was concerned by that,” Leonard said.

As the Jones family pulled in to the Walmart parking lot, Liddell followed and pulled in to the spot directly next to them. Leonard said Jones intentionally parked underneath a surveillance camera to make sure the incident was recorded. The video was played for media during Monday’s briefing.

Credit: Douglas County Sheriff's Office
An off-duty ICE officer will not face charges for shooting and killing a man in a Walmart parking lot in Douglas County. Officials said the shooting was justified because the officer feared for his family.

RELATED: Walmart shooting shrouded in questions due to heavily-redacted report

“In his conversations with law enforcement, Jones said he saw Liddell reach for something. At that point, he moves to the rear of the vehicle … because if there was a shooting, he didn’t want his family in the crossfire … He fires a shot … he shoots through the right rear of the windshield and strikes Mr. Liddelll one time.”

In the surveillance video, Jones is seen getting out of his vehicle with his weapon as soon as Liddell pulls next to him. After a few seconds, Jones moved to the back rear of the car. Leonard said the gun was at Liddell's side at that point, but Jones told police he turned around to face Jones and allegedly pointed the gun at him -- and at that point, Jones fired. 

The bullet struck Liddell in his chest, killing him. Leonard said the weapon that Liddell had in his car, which Jones retrieved from his passenger seat after shooting him, was an airsoft gun.

“It appeared to look like a real gun, and included a clip,” Leonard said.

Credit: WXIA
Douglas County officials showed the airsoft gun 45-year-old Johnathan Liddell reportedly had in his car before he was shot and killed in a Walmart parking lot.

Liddell's wounds are consistent with Jones' account that he turned around in his vehicle and allegedly pointed the airsoft gun at him while he was standing at the rear corner of the vehicle. 

Jones was captured on surveillance video going through Liddell's car. He took the airsoft gun out of the passenger side of Liddell's car and put it on top of the hood as his wife called police. 

"The only way he could have been shot in the chest is if Liddell was turned all the way around, exposing his chest to the gunman," Leonard said. 

RELATED: Witness describes tense moments of Walmart shooting near Litha Springs

The Jones family was “dressed for church” and they were in their personal car, not a police vehicle. Leonard said Jones did not have his service weapon and fired his own gun in the shooting, which is identical to his service weapon.

"Jones has never discharged his weapon in the performance of his duty (as an ICE agent)," Leonard said. "In this case, he was just a man going with his family to buy groceries. They were in his personal car, he used his personal gun."

Leonard said Liddell's actions at the traffic intersection and appearing to point a gun at the Jones family in the Walmart parking lot was "justified."

Leonard pointed to a similar incident involving Liddell in 2014, where he allegedly stopped in front of a car and "brake-checked" the other driver. He said Liddell got into a verbal confrontation with the other driver. Liddell allegedly brandished a large knife in that incident and the other man pulled out a handgun. Leonard said that law enforcement responded to the incident but no weapons were recovered from Liddell or the other driver. 

"Following someone is an escalation ... Mrs. Jones was bothered that (Liddell) was trying to conceal his identity, couple that with aggression ... it that was a real gun, there's no telling what would happen."

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