Columbus DA to prosecute ex-Washington County deputies accused in man’s tasing death
The Prosecuting Attorneys Council of Georgia has chosen Columbus District Attorney Stacey Jackson to be the special prosecutor in the Washington County case of three fired sheriff’s deputies, accused of causing a man’s death by tasing him as they investigated complaints of a “suspicious person.”
Jackson confirmed Wednesday that he was appointed to the case. “I haven’t received the file yet,” he said. “I got the order last week.” He was notified Friday, he said.
Ex-deputies Henry Lee Copeland, Rhett Scott and Michael Howell were previously tried for murder and other charges, but that case ended in a mistrial. The three former deputies will now be tried again with Jackson representing the state. According to reporting by Georgia Public Broadcasting, they are accused of killing Eurie Martin, 58, along a highway in the town of Deepstep, where Martin was walking through in July 2017 when a neighbor called police, finding the pedestrian’s conduct suspicious, authorities said.
Martin, 58, whose family said he had a history of mental illness, was Black. All three deputies are white.
Video evidence showed that Martin would not stop when the deputies confronted him, and ripped away Taser prongs when they first tried to stun him, investigators said. They then surrounded him and tased him again for up to 90 seconds until he was handcuffed and stopped moving, and realized minutes later that he had no pulse, the video showed.
Fired for violating agency policies, the former deputies went to trial in October 2021, accused of felony murder, involuntary manslaughter, false imprisonment and aggravated assault, among other charges. A jury deadlocked after three days of deliberation, causing a mistrial, GPB reported.
This story was originally published August 3, 2022 at 2:02 PM with the headline "Columbus DA to prosecute ex-Washington County deputies accused in man’s tasing death."