11th Circuit rejects additional charges for officers who shot Black man 76 times

ATLANTA (CN) — An 11th Circuit panel denied a request Tuesday from Georgia prosecutors to bring additional charges against two law enforcement officers facing felony murder counts related to the shooting of a mentally ill Black man in 2016.

In the unanimous opinion, the three-judge panel determined it lacked jurisdiction over the state’s appeal of a lower court’s denial of a motion for a “limited remand.”

After the criminal prosecution against federal task force officers Eric Heinze and Kristopher Hutchens was removed to federal court, the state moved for a limited remand to state court so that it could seek a superseding indictment from a Fulton County grand jury.

According to the state, without the limited remand, it could not seek the new charges before a state grand jury.

“With or without remand to state court, federal law does not prohibit the state from seeking a superseding indictment before a grand jury in state court,” U.S. Circuit Judge Barbara Lagoa, a Donald Trump appointee, wrote. “We therefore do not have jurisdiction over this appeal under the collateral order doctrine.”

U.S. Circuit Judge Elizabeth Branch, a fellow Trump appointee, wrote separately in a concurrence that while she agreed the panel lacks jurisdiction over the issue, she said they should have refrained from addressing the merits question of whether the state could supersede an indictment in the case.

The lower court had held only that the state could not receive a limited remand to do so because prosecutors declined to explain why it failed to bring the additional charges earlier.

After analyzing whether it had the statutory authority to remand the case, U.S. District Judge Victoria Calvert, a Joe Biden appointee, had noted in her ruling that she “was not convinced that the state needs a limited remand” and opined that there were available “alternatives” that would allow it to supersede the indictment.

But according to Branch, Calvert did not address any specific “alternatives” or evaluate their legal merits. Branch wrote that this left the question of whether the state can supersede the indictment “open, unfinished, [and] inconclusive," and that it should not have been addressed by the 11th Circuit when it lacks jurisdiction.

“Rather than analyzing the practical effect of the district court’s order, the majority answers a substantive question of federal law,” Branch wrote.

Branch and Lagoa were joined on the panel by U.S. Circuit Judge Robert Luck, also a Trump appointee.

Heinze and Hutchens were indicted in October 2021 for felony murder, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, first-degree burglary, making a false statement, and violation of oath by public officer.

State prosecutors want to replace the false statement counts against the officers with conspiracy counts and bring additional malice and felony murder counts.

The charges stem from their participation in a U.S. Marshals task force in August 2016 aimed at apprehending 26-year-old Jamarion Robinson.

Robinson, who suffered from schizophrenia, had outstanding felony arrest warrants for threatening to set his mother’s home on fire and then pointing a firearm at police officers.

When Heinze and Hutchens entered the apartment where Robinson was located, they fatally shot him, firing at Robinson over 90 times, leaving his body riddled with 76 bullet wounds. The shooting sparked an investigation into whether the officers’ excessive gun fire was beyond reasonable.

State prosecutors contend the two task force members used excessive force that day, pointing to a neighbor’s cell phone video in which three shots can be heard after witnesses said Robinson lost consciousness and no longer posed a threat.

The false statement charges relate to statements the officers made to Georgia Bureau of Investigation agents and claims that they ceased fire after a stun grenade exploded — which was later disputed by a bystander’s video.

The 11th Circuit has ruled on the incident before. In June 2024, a panel upheld the dismissal of an excessive force claim for money damages brought by Robinson’s mother, Monteria Robinson, due to the existence of alternative remedies and administrative processes to deter unconstitutional acts by task force officers.

Monteria Robinson also started a foundation in her son’s name with the intent to offer resources to families with mental health challenges and advocate for new police approaches to mental health concerns.

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