On Wednesday, a Fulton County Grand Jury decided to re-indict Atlanta police officer James Rolfe Burns for the murder of Deravis Caine Rogers.
The original indictment was ruled nolle prosequi in July after there were procedural issues related to statements made by Officer Burns.
The Fulton County District Attorney, Paul L. Howard, Jr., decided to bring the case once more before the grand jury so it can move forward.
As previous reported by Photography Is Not A Crime:
> Atlanta police officer James R. Burns gave the usual spiel about fearing for his life when he shot and killed a suspected burglar in his car last month, claiming the man was driving directly towards him, trying to run him over. But then it was discovered that Burns shot Deravis Caine Rogers through the passenger side window as he was driving past him. And then it was discovered Rogers was not even the suspected burglar to the call to which he was responding. As a result, Burns has been fired.
After viewing the footage of the shooting, it took jurors 10 minutes to return the indictment but last month charges against the officer were dropped due to a new U.S. Supreme Court ruling.
The new grand jury gave the new indictment charging Rogers this time with: felony murder, aggravated assault and violation of oath of a public officer.
“Today’s murder re-indictment against James Burns is further proof that the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office is fully committed to the complete prosecution of this case. We just want to make sure justice is served,” Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard said, according to WSBTV.
Rogers parents, Melva Rogers and Deravis Thomas, released a statement through the family’s lawyers about the re-indictment:
> “As the parents of Caine Rogers, we are grateful that this Grand Jury has returned a re-indictment against former officer James Burns. We are very pleased with this outcome and feel one step closer to justice in the unlawful killing of our beloved son, Caine. Nothing will bring Caine back to us, but we know this is a powerful, necessary step to move forward and get the justice we are seeking. We would like to thank Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard for his commitment to this case, the community for its unwavering support and The Cochran Firm Atlanta for being our advocate. We continue to have faith that justice will be done in this case.”
Rogers was pronounced dead later that evening at Grady Memorial Hospital.
Between 2000 and 2005, there were 180 fatal shootings by police officers in Georgia and not a single one resulted in criminal charges against the officers, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
