The Coweta County District Attorney's Office has decided not to indict a deputy who shot an armed man, paralyzing him on April 18, 2021.
Prosecutors decided the deputy was authorized to use deadly force after reviewing a Georgia Bureau of Investigation file, Fox 5 reports.
Mario Clarke is charged with aggravated assault for shooting at his father on March 19, 2021.
About one month later, Clarke was a suspect in a car theft. The manhunt for Clarke led to a shootout with law enforcement.
According to the Coweta County District Attorney's Office, law enforcement officers from multiple agencies chased Clarke on Interstate 85 when he crashed and abandoned his car at mile marker 48.
A Coweta County Sheriff’s Office deputy saw Clarke near Whitlock Recreation Center and chased him in his squad car. That was moments before the shootout began.
Body camera footage shows the deputy pointing a stun gun outside the driver's window, telling Clarke to get on the ground. Clarke appears to point a gun at the deputy and shots ring out. The deputy fires shots through the windshield of the car. The Coweta County District Attorney's Office said at least one bullet hit Clarke in the back.
"Because the deputy was justified in using deadly force to apprehend Mr. Clarke, the District Attorney’s Office declines to prosecute him for shooting Mr. Clarke and considers this matter closed," a statement from the district attorney's office said.
