Officers used justified force against man who died in Macon jail, prosecutor rules
The force used by Bibb County deputies in an incident that left incarcerated man Stephen Fossett dead was justified, the Macon district attorney has ruled. Officers will not face criminal charges.
Fossett, who was in jail on trespassing charges, died in May 2024 after a disorder with officers who used a taser on him. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation determined his cause of death was homicide. But despite that, Macon-area District Attorney Anita R. Howard conducted an independent review and found that charges “are not legally warranted,” Howard said Wednesday.
“After careful review of all available evidence, we have concluded that the force used by officers was reasonable under the circumstances and did not violate Georgia law governing the use of force by peace officers,” Howard said. “The evidence shows that the officers were responding to a rapidly evolving situation with an inmate who had consumed an illegal substance, became combative, and attempted to flee while in custody.”
Howard said autopsy records revealed Fossett had consumed synthetic marijuana, known as K2 or MDMB-4en-PINACA, before the incident. Deputies were seeking medical help for Fossett because he was found unresponsive, but he became combative while medical personnel were attempting to treat him with Narcan.
It resulted in a struggle between Fossett and deputies, and officers used their tasers. Evidence showed officers didn’t taser Fossett for a period of time beyond what is recommended, prosecutors said.
“Despite multiple trigger pulls, the combined effective deployment time was 13.24 seconds, which was within the 15-second threshold recommended in training,” Howard’s office said in an announcement Wednesday.
The cause of death was ultimately due to the toxic effects of synthetic marijuana, complicated by the physical altercation, restraint and taser use, prosecutors ruled after their review. Other factors that contributed to his death included his schizophrenia, pulmonary emphysema and a bridged left anterior descending coronary artery.
The district attorney’s office emphasized that the determination is based solely on criminal liability, and doesn’t address civil liability or administrative policy matters within the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office, prosecutors said.
“The District Attorney extends condolences to Mr. Fossett’s family during this difficult time,” Howard’s office said.
‘We will get Stephen justice’
Fossett’s family has made multiple appearances alongside Atlanta civil rights attorneys Mawuli Davis and Nathan Fitzpatrick seeking justice for the inmate’s death in custody. Most recently, on Jan. 28, what would have been Fossett’s 43rd birthday, the attorneys said they would hold Bibb County Sheriff’s Office accountable for what happened.
“What’s done in the dark will always come to light,” Fitzpatrick said Jan. 28. “There is footage available, and we will look at the time stamps, we will look at the timeline and we will uncover everything that’s been available for us to recover, and we will get Stephen justice.”
This story was originally published April 9, 2025 at 11:24 AM.
