ATLANTA — Channel 2 Action News has confirmed the Atlanta Police Department has fired an officer-involved in a deadly shooting.
Officer James Burns fatally shot a man suspected of breaking into a car more than two weeks ago in Midtown.
Burns has been fired from the force as a result of that shooting.
"We know the officer did not ID the person in the vehicle" Sgt. Warren Pickard said.
Exclusive: APD confirming to @wsbtv that they have fired Officer James Burns re: a police involved shooting. #WSB
— Nefertiti Jáquez (@nefertitijaquez) July 11, 2016
Channel 2's Nefertiti Jaquez learned Burns was notified on July 1 that he was being stripped of his badge.
At first, the police department would not comment on the case since it was being reviewed by the Georgia Bureau of Investigations.
But now it's going on record saying it has terminated the 34-year-old officer because the investigation revealed he used "unnecessary and unreasonable" force.
It all unfolded on June 22 in the parking lot of Monroe Place apartments off of Piedmont Road.
"We have not been able to determine that this was an aggressive situation, we have not been able to determine if the person that was shot posed any immediate threat to the officer,” Pickard said.
This all started when an off-duty officer working security at this apartment complex called in for backup when he spotted a man breaking into a car.
When Burns arrived on scene, he said he spotted Deravis Caine Rogers.
PICTURED: the #APD officer who was just fired from the force for using "unnecessary force." Stay w/@wsbtv. pic.twitter.com/2joGPZkXi1
— Nefertiti Jáquez (@nefertitijaquez) July 11, 2016
According to the officer, Rogers jumped into a car and tried to drive away when he opened fire and shot Rogers in the head.
POLICE: Officer Burns has been fired for using "unnecessary and unreasonable" force in this shooting. @wsbtv
— Nefertiti Jáquez (@nefertitijaquez) July 11, 2016
Police said the evidence suggests the officer fired his gun without really knowing who was in the car and when he opened fire, he violated the department's policy.
"The person was already in the car when the officer arrived on the scene. The vehicle was already in motion," Pickard said.
While Rogers' family said it's happy the officer was fired, they said they won't be satisfied until he's charged with murder.
"Something has got to be done. I don't know what, or how, Officer James Burns was wrong," Rogers' aunt said.
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