The fatal shooting of an African-American man by police in Atlanta, Georgia has incited renewed calls for justice by protesters and led to the resignation of the Atlanta police chief.
The shooting comes as the Black Lives Matter movement continues to gain global traction following the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black father who was allegedly murdered by a Caucasian cop in Minneapolis on May 25.
On Friday (local time), a man identified as Rayshard Books died after a scuffle with police officers in south Atlanta. Brooks reportedly fell asleep in his car at a drive-through restaurant and according to local authorities, resisted officers after failing a breathalyzer test.
Atlanta's police chief Erika Shields resigned less than 24 hours after Brooks' death, following intensified calls for change to systemic and ingrained racial inequality.
In a statement reported by local media, Shields said her decision to step down came from "a deep and abiding love for this city and this department".
Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms has since called for the officer responsible for shooting Brooks to be fired. During a media briefing on Saturday, Bottoms said she does not believe the shooting was "a justified use of deadly force".
The death of the 27-year-old is now being probed by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI). Footage captured by eyewitnesses and shared to social media is reportedly being reviewed, as well as surveillance video obtained from Wendy's.
Video taken by onlookers shows Brooks struggling with two police officers outside a Wendy's restaurant. The 27-year-old appears to grab an officer's Taser before breaking free. The second officer manages to use their Taser on Brooks, before moving out of frame. Three gunshots are heard and Brooks is seen on the ground.
The Wendy's surveillance footage doesn't show the scuffle, but captures Brooks running from where police cars are parked. Brooks is then shown appearing to point the stun gun at the officer, according to CNN.
"At that point the Atlanta officer reaches down and retrieves his weapon from his holster, discharges it, strikes Mr Brooks there on the parking lot and he goes down," GBI director Vic Reynolds said in a press conference on Saturday.
Brooks was hospitalised for his injuries, but later died. An officer was also treated for an injury sustained in the struggle.
The Fulton County District Attorney's Office is conducting a separate investigation into the incident, it said in a statement.
Brooks' death marks the 48th officer-involved shooting investigated by the GBI this year - 15 of which were fatal, ABC News reports.
After protesters started to gather outside the Wendy's restaurant on Friday, renewed campaigns began in Atlanta's centre. Footage from Saturday's protest shows demonstrators holding signs bearing Brooks' name and Black Lives Matter imagery.
Atlanta's residents have already been heavily involved in Black Lives Matter protests following Floyd's alleged murder. The 46-year-old died after former officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes.
Chauvin and the three other officers deemed as complicit in Floyd's death have been fired and charged, with Chauvin facing a maximum of 40 years behind bars for second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
Peaceful protests and violent riots have taken place across the US in response to the killing and have inspired demonstrations around the world, including in Auckland.
On Friday, the Minneapolis City Council passed a resolution to replace its police department with a community-led public safety system. It had voted to disband the police department just days prior.
