By Kanishka Singh
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. federal prosecutors will not bring charges in the fatal 2019 arrest of unarmed Black motorist Ronald Greene, Greene’s family said on Tuesday.
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT
Greene, 49, died in May 2019 on a roadside in rural northern Louisiana after a violent confrontation with officers that followed a high-speed car chase.
Officials initially said Greene had died driving his car but body-camera footage that was eventually made public revealed the white officers dragging and beating Greene who was screaming in fear.
His death further fueled a national debate over police brutality, especially against Black men.
KEY QUOTES
“We believe the Department of Justice, (Assistant Attorney General) Kristin Clark, (Attorney General) Merrick Garland, they all failed the people of Louisiana,” Dinelle Hardin, Greene’s sister, told a CBS News affiliate. “Not just the Greene family but the Department of Justice failed the entire state of Louisiana.”
Greene’s mother, Mona Hardin, told the media outlet her family was asked for a meeting with federal officials where they were informed there would be no criminal charges.
The Justice Department had no immediate comment.
CONTEXT
Greene’s family told local media that a Justice Department probe into the pattern and practise of Louisiana State Police had concluded and that federal officials told them there were some findings against the police. The Associated Press reported on Tuesday that the findings will show a pattern of state troopers using excessive force.
A grand jury indicted five Louisiana law enforcement officers in 2022 on charges ranging from negligent homicide to malfeasance for their role in the death of Greene but the charges were later cut.
(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Saad Sayeed)
