White Prosecutor Stalling: 1 Year later & No Charges Against Columbus (Ga) Police Officer who Murdered Unarmed Black Firefighter

From [HERE] and [HERE] It's been a year to the day since Tony Carr was apparently carjacked by a fleeing bank robber, then shot dead by a police officer who was giving chase.

On Sept. 6, 2011, Carr, a 34-year-old Fort Benning firefighter, had gone home to 2907 Gardenia St. at lunch to let his dog out. He was in front of the house just before noon, speaking to his brother, Michael Carr, on his cellphone when Alrahiem Tolbert, 30, who had just robbed the MEA Credit Union around the corner and fled on foot, apparently hijacked Carr's work truck.

It's unclear exactly how or why Carr ended up in the passenger seat of the truck, but as it was backed out of the driveway, it almost hit Columbus Police Officer Vincent Lockhart Jr., 23, who had witnessed the robber fleeing and went after him, according to police reports.

Lockhart opened fire, apparently striking Carr, who had fallen or was falling from the truck, in the chest, wounding him fatally, and hitting Tolbert several times. Tolbert lost control of the truck and slammed into a utility pole. Tolbert was pronounced dead on the scene. Carr died later at The Medical Center.

At first, police considered both men suspects in the robbery. But as the investigation progressed, it became apparent that Carr was an innocent bystander.

Lockhart was placed on paid administrative leave immediately, which is department procedure in an officer shooting. A year later, he remains on paid leave, according to Tom Barron, the city's director of human resources. His salary is $36,656, according to city records.

Lockhart was placed on paid administrative leave immediately, which is department procedure in an officer shooting. A year later, he remains on paid leave, according to Tom Barron, the city's director of human resources. His salary is $36,656, according to city records.

The case has been investigated by Columbus police's Department of Professional Standards and the Georgia and Federal Bureaus of Investigation. Their reports have been turned over to District Attorney Julia Slater, who is considering whether to bring the case before a grand jury.

Slater has said that she is very limited in how much she can say about an ongoing investigation.

But her office released a statement on the heels of a recent NAACP news conference calling for action to be taken.

According to Slater's statement, she contacted Carr's family as soon as she received the investigatory reports.

She said she has assured the family that as soon as she makes a decision on how to proceed, she will notify them first.

"After I have updated these people on the progress of the investigation, and after they have had a chance to reflect on this information, I will be able to share the update with the public," Slater's statement reads. "I expect I will be able to share this information in the near future."

Nate Sanderson, president of the local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, said he disagrees with the way Slater is handling the information.

"We have a fundamental disagreement on that," Sanderson said. "I understand her position that she wants to keep the family informed. But this is a criminal case, and a criminal case is 'we the people,' not 'we the family.' She has a duty and a responsibility to the people."

Sanderson said his organization simply wants to know what happened that day last year, and contends that the public has a right to know what happened.

"The NAACP's position is that we don't know what happened," he said. "We don't know if the proper procedures were followed or if they were violated. We're just asking them to inform the community and let the chips fall as they may."

Mayor Teresa Tomlinson, whose job includes being the city's director of public safety, said she is looking forward to Slater deciding what direction the case will take and releasing details of the three investigations, which produced "hundreds and hundreds of pages of documents."

"There is a specific process that does of course take time," Tomlinson said. "That's very little solace to the family and the people who have been involved and are awaiting a conclusion. Unfortunately, that's the time it takes for this process to run its course."

Tomlinson said the length of the investigation and the yearlong paid administrative leave for Lockhart are unusual, but are attributable to the extreme complexity of the case.

"I think it's unusual for an investigation to take this long," she said. "But thankfully we have very, very few investigations that involve death. Normally where we're talking about paid administrative leave, you're talking about impropriety, theft or not following policy and procedures. This is an extreme circumstance. It's one of the most complex circumstances you could possibly have."

Attempts to contact Carr's younger brother, Michael Carr, who lives in Texas, were unsuccessful.

Read more here: http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/2012/09/05/2189847/a-year-after-fort-benning-firefighter.html#storylink=cpy