POLICE STAGE PROTEST OVER MURDER CHARGE

Police officers in Atlanta called in sick Thursday in protest at a decision by the state prosecutor to charge a fellow officer with murder over the death of a black man shot twice in the back in a restaurant car park.

Garrett Rolfe, who was fired shortly after the incident on Friday, has been charged with 11 counts, including felony murder, while a second officer on the scene, Devin Brosnan, faced three lesser counts.

Paul Howard, Atlanta’s district attorney, said Rolfe had no justification for shooting Rayshard Brooks, 27, as he fled arrest.

Hours after the charges were announced, Atlanta police officers began calling in sick just before their night shifts started.