New facts have emerged on Thursday, December 27, which sheds a little more light on a Macon police officer who shot 49 year-old Sammie Davis, Jr. at a Kroger store located on Pio Nono Ave on December 21.
Was this a justified shooting? The incident is now under investigation and this particular case has brought a lot of attention from Macon-Bibb residents who believe that the Macon police officer acted improperly which resulted in the death of Sammie Davis, Jr.
Davis was unarmed and was shot three times in the chest.
WGXA-TV had interviewed a family member of Davis, Jr and she had said the following:
Initial local reports by area TV stations and The Macon Telegraph indicated the officer was attempting to serve a warrant.
This information provided by the Macon Police Department shortly after the shooting and subsequently reported by local television stations was incorrect.
Davis, Jr., a 49 year-old African-American male had no warrants against him and had no criminal history.
The family is now demanding answers.
In addition to retracted reports by the Macon Police Department that Sammie Davis, Jr. had a criminal history and was being served warrant at the time of the shooting, WMAZ-TV reported that the officer in question, Clayton Sutton, has had some complaints which were part of his personnel file.
According to a WMAZ-TV report, Sutton had been disciplined a least dozen times.
This case has some similarities to the Trayvon Martin case in Sanford, Florida involving Robert Zimmerman, the "Stand Your Ground' vigilante.
Local police in Florida provided incorrect information early in the investigation and were prepared to sweep the investigation under the rug, but intense media pressure nationally helped to bring more attention to the case.
Mike Burns, the Macon Police Chief, heads a department which will merge with Bibb County's Sheriff Department due to consolidation in early 2014, and Burns' had said in early April that he would likely leave if consolidation passed.
Bibb County voted for consolidation during a July 31 general primary.
Coincidentally, the eventual new 'top cop' of a consolidated Macon-Bibb County in 2014 -- David Davis--was sworn in as the Bibb County Sheriff on Thursday, December 20-- one day before the Sammie Davis. Jr. shooting.
Davis won the Democratic primary in July 2012 and had no Republican opposition. For the most part, Davis had broad support among all races and political affiliations--Democrat and Republican-- in Bibb County.
In addition to Davis assuming office, The Macon Judicial District has a new District Attorney-- David Cooke.
Cooke will have the case eventually handed to him after the investigation is finished and will proceed on what action which would need to be taken.
Many in Macon's black community want answers and justice done and are looking toward Cooke to aggressively prosecute this case.
There is not likely to be a quick resolution to this case for a long while which may span several months and possibly years.
