A Georgia police officer seen on camera choking former NFL player Desmond Marrow has been fired.
Not only did Officer David Rose use unnecessary force, but his in-car video camera captured him saying that he was going to leave the choking incident out of his police report, the Henry County Police Department said in a statement on Thursday.
Authorities dropped the charge of “obstruction of a law enforcement officer” against Marrow, USA Today reported. A judge previously dropped the felony charge of making terrorist threats.
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READ MORE: Video shows ex-NFL player being body-slammed, choked by Georgia police officers
The Dec. 2, 2017 incident was sparked by Marrow, who is black, confronting a pair of white men who called him a racial slur while driving, according to Marrow’s lawyers. They added that a witness then called 911 and falsely reported that Marrow was carrying a weapon.
Video of the ensuing arrest shows a handcuffed Marrow being held against the back of a pickup truck by two police officers, before one of them lifts his leg and slams him to the ground.
Another officer, Rose, then appears to choke Marrow, who is heard making choking sounds and mouthing, “I can’t breathe!” before going limp.
The actions of the first officer, Matt Donaldson, were judged to have been appropriate and in line with departmental policy, the Henry County Police Department’s internal investigation concluded.
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