Georgia to pay $4.8M in state trooper’s killing of Black man

By RUSS BYNUM
Associated Press

SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — The state of Georgia has agreed to pay a $4.8 million legal settlement in the killing of a Black man who was shot by a state trooper trying to pull him over for a broken tail light. The trooper who killed Julian Lewis in 2020 was swiftly fired and charged with murder, but the prosecution stalled last year when a grand jury in rural Screven County declined to indict him. The office of Georgia’s attorney general confirmed the settlement amount Friday. Atlanta attorney Andrew Lampros said state officials agreed to a mediated settlement to avoid a civil lawsuit over 60-year-old Lewis’ death. Trooper Jacob Thompson shot Lewis after forcing his car into a ditch as Lewis tried to flee a traffic stop. Thompson said he fired in self-defense.