Family of Teen Killed by Newnan Officer Plans Legal Announcement
Dorsey’s family and attorneys Ben Crump, Harry Daniels, and Gerald Griggs are set to speak at noon at Roscoe Jenkins Funeral Home. The attorneys have promised a significant legal update in the case, which remains under investigation by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI).
The shooting happened on October 3 on Cliff Circle. The GBI’s account says an officer followed a white car, approached after it stopped and pursued Dorsey when he ran. The officer used a Taser, then said he saw Dorsey draw a gun and ordered him to drop it before firing. Dorsey died at a hospital.
The family disputes that account. Its attorneys say investigators found a handgun about 42 feet from where Dorsey fell, which they argue indicates he threw it and was unarmed when shot. State forensic testing completed October 15 found Dorsey’s DNA on a Canik 9mm pistol recovered at the scene.
District Attorney Herb Cranford said the criminal review will examine whether the officer thought lethal force was needed to safeguard his own life. He has not stated a view on the legality of the officer’s stop of Dorsey, saying Georgia’s self-defense law makes reasonable suspicion irrelevant to whether force was justified.
The GBI has not publicly confirmed whether Dorsey was holding or had thrown the gun when the officer fired. The agency is continuing its investigation; Cranford says his office will assess whether evidence proves a crime beyond a reasonable doubt. Police body-camera footage is to be released after the GBI investigation is complete.
Newnan Shooting Raises Urgent Questions About Police Accountability
The central question in the fatal shooting of Zadarious Dorsey is whether he was armed when a Newnan officer shot him. His family’s attorneys say the handgun was found about 42 feet from where Dorsey fell, evidence they argue shows he had thrown it and was unarmed.
The family and attorneys Ben Crump, Harry Daniels, and Gerald Griggs are due to give a legal update at a noon news conference in Newnan. The shooting occurred on October 3, after an officer followed a car to Cliff Circle and pursued Dorsey when he ran.
The officer told investigators he saw Dorsey draw a gun, ordered him to drop it and fired when he did not comply. Dorsey died at a hospital. State forensic testing later found his DNA on a Canik 9mm pistol recovered at the scene, but that finding does not publicly establish whether he held the weapon at the moment shots were fired.
District Attorney Herb Cranford says the criminal review is limited to whether the officer thought lethal force was needed to preserve his life. He has not said whether the officer was legally entitled to pull Dorsey over, citing the state’s self-defense law.
The GBI investigation continues, and the agency has not publicly resolved whether Dorsey was holding or had thrown the gun. Cranford says prosecutors will decide whether the evidence proves a crime beyond a reasonable doubt. Body-camera footage is expected to be released after the investigation concludes.
Prosecutors Focus Review on Officer’s Split-Second Use of Force
The criminal review of the Newnan police shooting centers on whether the officer thought lethal force was required to preserve his own life. District Attorney Herb Cranford says that is the issue under Georgia’s self-defense law, rather than whether the officer had reasonable suspicion to stop Dorsey.
The officer said he saw Dorsey draw a gun after a pursuit on October 3, ordered him to drop it and fired when he did not comply. Dorsey died at a hospital. State forensic testing found his DNA on a Canik 9mm pistol recovered at the scene.
Dorsey’s family disputes the officer’s account, arguing that the gun’s location—about 42 feet from where Dorsey fell—shows he had thrown it before he was shot. The GBI has not publicly confirmed whether he still held the weapon when the officer fired, leaving that key detail unresolved as its investigation continues.
Dorsey’s legal representatives, Ben Crump, Harry Daniels, and Gerald Griggs, are scheduled to deliver a legal update at a noon news conference in Newnan on November 6. The GBI is conducting an independent investigation, and Cranford says prosecutors will consider whether the evidence proves a crime beyond a reasonable doubt.
Body-camera footage is to be released when the GBI completes its work. Until then, the prosecutor’s stated legal test remains whether the officer thought lethal force was needed to protect his own life.
Reported by FOX 5 Atlanta, Atlanta News First.
