A current Georgia state trooper and a former police officer have been charged in connection with the 2022 shooting death of a man inside a suburban Atlanta home, authorities announced Wednesday.
A grand jury indicted former DeKalb County Police Officer Russell Mathis, 30, on charges of felony manslaughter and misdemeanor recklessness, and Officer Jordan Vance, 30, the county prosecutor’s office announced in a news release. was charged with reckless conduct.
DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston announced the charges at a press conference as 36-year-old Marando Salmon’s family watched, WAGA-TV reported.
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The charges stem from the Nov. 4, 2022 shooting of Salmon inside his Stone Mountain home. According to a preliminary investigation, officers responded to a call about a stolen vehicle parked in the driveway of a residence around 11 p.m.
Vance knocked on the front door of the house, and it swung open. Then the officials came in. While cleaning up the house, Mathis opened the door to his upstairs bedroom and found Salmon sitting on his bed in the dark.
A grand jury indicted former DeKalb County police officer Russell Mathis on charges of manslaughter and misdemeanor reckless conduct, and indicted Officer Jordan Vance on charges of reckless conduct in the 2022 shooting death of a man inside his home. .
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said the officers came forward and “issued commands,” but Salmon did not comply. The GBI initially said Salmon reached for a handgun and was shot, but in subsequent reports, officials said Salmon threw an object at officers who opened his bedroom door. .
“Officers did not see Salmon touching the firearm, but he did see Salmon reaching for a nearby object,” the GBI report states.
That’s when Mathis allegedly opened fire, fatally shooting Salmon.
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The officer told the grand jury that he believed the object was a knife, but it turned out to be a cell phone, the city of Boston said.
Salmon was unarmed at the time of the shooting, but a gun was later found in a holster in his bedroom. Paramedics took Salmon to Grady Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Mathis and Vance are expected to turn themselves in to the county jail in the coming days. A trial date has not been set.
