Nationwide — The deputy who shot and killed Leonard Remedy, a 53-year-old African American man wrongfully imprisoned for 16 years, won’t face costs, prosecutors introduced. Leonard was fatally shot by Camden County Deputy Buck Aldridge throughout a site visitors cease in October 2023.
Remedy was returning to Atlanta from visiting his mom in Florida when Aldridge stopped him for reckless driving on Interstate 95. Authorities mentioned Remedy initially complied however resisted arrest upon studying he was being detained. Aldridge used a taser and baton earlier than capturing Leonard.
District Lawyer Keith Higgins acknowledged that Aldridge’s use of lethal pressure was justified primarily based on the circumstances. “Use of lethal pressure at that time was objectively affordable on condition that he was being overpowered at the moment,” he mentioned, in keeping with CBS News.
In consequence, Aldridge won’t face felony costs and stays employed with the Camden County Sheriff’s Workplace in an administrative function.
Leonard’s household and their attorneys, together with Ben Crump and Harry Daniels, condemned the choice, saying it’s “a devastating failure of justice, sending the message that legislation enforcement officers can take a life with out consequence. Leonard Remedy was a person who had already fought so onerous to reclaim his life after a wrongful conviction, solely to have it stolen from him once more. His household won’t cease preventing for accountability, and neither will we,” they mentioned in an announcement.
The household has filed a $16 million lawsuit in opposition to Aldridge and former Sheriff Jim Proctor, alleging extreme pressure. The case is ongoing in U.S. District Courtroom.
Leonard was exonerated in 2020 after serving 16 years in a Florida jail for a theft he didn’t commit. After his launch, he began rebuilding his life, reconnecting along with his household, and getting ready to purchase his first residence. His dying has left his family members devastated. The Innocence Mission, which helped safe his launch, mentioned his dying was a tragic injustice.
