The family of Zadarious Dorsey plans to sue the city of Newnan for $75 million following the fatal police shooting of the 18-year-old on Oct. 3.
Attorneys Ben Crump and Harry Daniels announced the family’s plans to sue at a news conference Friday. Daniels said the legal team sent the city a notice of claim Thursday seeking damages for wrongful death, pain and suffering, and emotional distress. The notice is a formal step toward a lawsuit, but no case has been filed.
Daniels said body camera footage shows Dorsey was unarmed when he was shot and questioned why a gun was found more than 40 feet from his body. He also said Dorsey was not suspected of a crime. Crump said the officer shot Dorsey six times in the back, and both attorneys called for criminal charges.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said an officer followed a car until it stopped on Cliff Circle. Five men got out, with one walking toward a nearby home and the other four running away. The officer chased Dorsey and used a Taser, but Dorsey continued running. Investigators said the officer then saw Dorsey pull a gun from his waistband, ordered him to drop it and shot him. Dorsey was taken to a hospital, where he died.
The Coweta Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office said Dorsey’s DNA was found on a gun recovered 42 feet from his body. Prosecutors also released body camera images they said show an object in his right hand consistent with a firearm.
Preliminary autopsy findings showed six gunshot wounds, including one to the chest, one to the hip and four to the legs, according to the district attorney’s office.
The body camera footage has not been released publicly, but the district attorney’s office said a version excluding footage of Dorsey suffering is being prepared for release at his family’s request.
