WOODBINE, Ga. (AP) – A former Georgia police officer has been acquitted of voluntary manslaughter and involuntary manslaughter in the fatal shooting of a fleeing, unarmed black man.
The jury Saturday, however, found Zechariah Presley guilty of violation of oath of office in the death of Tony Green. He was ordered to be jailed pending sentencing Oct. 18. He faces a penalty of one to five years.
Green’s relatives wiped away tears after the verdict was read. Presley sat silently at the defense table.
Presley was a Kingsland police officer when Green fled a June 2018 traffic stop. A foot chase ended with a brief struggle between them. Then Presley, who is white, shot Green eight times.
Presley testified Green turned back to face him and he feared Green was armed. Investigators determined Green held a cellphone.
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