‘Very Disappointed’: Jury Acquits White Georgia Deputies Who Tased Black Man 15 Times Until His Heart Stopped ‘Because He Wanted Water’

A group of former Georgia deputies were cleared of wrongdoing in a criminal trial where they were accused of repeatedly tasing a man until he died. The three deputies — Henry Lee Copeland, Michael Howell, and Rhett Scott — were fired from their jobs at the Washington County Sheriff’s Office following an internal investigation into the in-custody death of Eurie Lee Martin on July 7, 2017. Eurie Lee Martin was tased by three deputies in Sandersville, Georgia. (Photo: Screenshot bodycam footage) Temperatures reached 100 degrees that day when 58-year-old Martin walked 30 miles from Milledgeville in Baldwin County to Sandersville in Washington County. At one point, he stopped at a home to ask for water, but the homeowner called 911, telling a dispatcher he didn’t know whether Martin was “crazy, drunk, or what.” Martin suffered from schizophrenia and lived in a group home at the time. ‘Egregious’: Judge Scolds Pennsylvania Cop Who Locked Up Black Teen for Nearly a Month and Hid Evidence That Proved His Innocence Copeland, Howell, and Scott, all of whom are white, responded to the call, and when they encountered Martin, a Black man, they attempted to interrogate him. When he didn’t answer their questions, they...