DA to bring charges against deputy who shot Cobb man killed during no-knock raid

Oct. 28—The Cobb District Attorney's Office confirmed Wednesday it plans to bring charges against a Cobb sheriff's deputy who shot and killed Austell man Johnny Bolton in a raid on a Smyrna apartment last December.

Bolton, who was 49, was killed by the Cobb County Sheriff's Office SWAT team during a pre-dawn, no-knock raid at a Smyrna apartment on Dec. 17, 2020. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation investigated the incident and turned over its findings to the DA's office in March.

The DA's office presented evidence to a grand jury on Sept. 9, court records show. The grand jury reviewed the evidence, which included testimony from a GBI agent, testimony from the medical examiner, camera footage, witness statements and photographs, before determining that Deputy Samuel Daniel's use of force was not justified under Georgia law. The grand jury recommended the DA's office take further action in the case.

Latonia Hines, spokesperson for District Attorney Flynn Broady, said Broady is continuing to investigate. Broady will then take the case to another grand jury to seek an indictment. Hines could not yet say what charges the DA's office would bring or provide a timeline as to when another grand jury will occur.

Bolton's children, Diamond Bolton and Kyrie Turner, are also suing the deputy in federal court, seeking damages.

Bolton's family is represented by Zack Greenamyre of Atlanta law firm Edmond, Lindsay & Atkins.

"Defendant Daniel acted with conscious indifference, reckless disregard for the consequences of their actions, an intent to injure, and malice such that an award of punitive damages is authorized under federal and Georgia law," the lawsuit says.

According to witness statements collected by Greenamyre, Bolton was unarmed and asleep on a couch in the apartment when Marietta Cobb Smyrna (MCS) Organized Crime Task Force agents and Cobb County Sheriff's Office SWAT team deputies stormed the residence.

Witnesses said Bolton was unarmed and sleeping on the couch, Greenamyre said, and that Bolton stood up after police entered and, within seconds, was shot multiple times. Bolton posed no threat to officers and did not attack anyone, the lawsuit says.

Lawyers for Bolton's family say the apartment that was raided was an "informal boarding house," with two bedrooms rented out to women and their children. Bolton was sleeping on the couch there but was not officially renting the unit.

Bolton had previously been convicted on drug charges and served jail time from 1999 to 2001, 2003 to 2006 and a six-month stint in 2010, according to the Georgia Department of Corrections. The no-knock warrant, however, listed three targets of a drug investigation — none of them were Bolton.

The warrant states the MCS unit had surveilled the apartment, located at 5050 Springbrook Trail, unit 505, in Smyrna. Police also interviewed witnesses and used informants to conclude that it was being used to sell drugs. The no-knock provision was granted because giving verbal notice before entering would have "increase(d) the peril to officers" and led to the "destruction of evidence sought."

No-knock criticism

No-knock warrants have come under scrutiny in recent years by critics who say they endanger officers and the people who are being raided. Occupants may be confused, not able to see and don't realize they are being raided by police, leading to the exchange of gunfire, critics say.

A pre-dawn raid in March 2020 led to police shooting and killing Louisville, Kentucky woman Breonna Taylor, who, along with George Floyd, have become internationally known symbols of police killings.

Greenamyre said the sheriff's office told him that no-knock warrants have not been discontinued, but that Sheriff Craig Owens has instituted "greater procedural hurdles" that, in Greenamyre's view, do not go "nearly far enough."

Since the May press conference, Greenamyre said he and the family have spoken with Broady, describing the meeting as mostly "process-based." They also spoke with Owens "not long after May." Owens told them that at the time, the officer was "still assigned to regular SWAT duties."

The sheriff's office did not respond to questions by press time. In May, when Greenamyre and Bolton's family held a press conference demanding answers about why Bolton was killed, Owens' office provided a copy of a May 7 letter sent to Greenamyre from the county attorney.

Assistant County Attorney Lauren Bruce wrote in the letter that "we believe there are several material inaccuracies" in a notice that Greenamyre had filed that serves as the first step in pursuing personal injury claims against governments.

Greenamyre stopped short of calling for criminal charges against Daniel, saying there were too many questions remaining.

"I haven't seen all the evidence. So I think it's relatively premature for me to have an opinion on criminal liability ... I think the family wants to see accountability, and that likely involves criminal liability as to this officer," Greenamyre said. "But there are more systemic issues at play from use of no-knock warrants, which are inherently dangerous. We had questions about the investigation and the warrant application that led to this in the first place. ... We are calling for increased transparency and exchange of information and for reform as to the use of no-knock warrants."