Armed protesters 'take over' the streets near the Wendy's parking lot where Rayshard Brooks was killed and use crude roadblocks to prevent people from getting to their homes on the day of his funeral
Armed Georgians have 'taken over' the Wendy's parking lot where Rayshard Brooks was shot dead by police in Atlanta.
People who live in the neighborhood said the group of people brandishing firearms had blocked the roads making it difficult for them to get home.
Some gun owners were seen holding rifles or with pistols in their pockets while standing outside the fast food restaurant that was burned down the day after Brooks was killed by Officer Garrett Rolfe.
On Tuesday, the day of Brooks' funeral, many locals watched his hearse went by, waving the American flag and hold 'black life matters' signs where flowers and pictures were placed.
Locals have said armed people have 'taken over' the Atlanta Wendy's parking lot where Rayshard Brooks was killed on June 12
Some locals carried their rifles over their chest and some had pistols in their pockets as Brooks' hearse went by on Tuesday
An armed man awaits the casket of Brooks to pass by the area in South Atlanta where he was gunned down 11 days ago
But one woman described a scene of many people boasting weapons, telling 11 Alive, 'they all had guns'.
'They were all brandishing the guns to me from their waistbands,' Jennifer Edwards said. 'And that they were going to shoot me in the back of the head if I did get away.'
She did get away. Edwards shared an image of her car with a large rock on the floor, claiming someone near Wendy's threw it through her windshield.
'The guy took his gun out of his waistband and started to point it at me,' Edwards told 11 Alive. 'I didn't care, I just went around him. If I hit him, if I bumped him, sorry. I have to get away with my life.'
Another woman caught in the inconvenient roadblock near University Avenue said that in the last few days people at the location were even making life difficult for those who lived in the immediate vicinity.
'They wouldn't let her through and she felt intimidated,' Kimberlee Jones told 11 Alive about her mother.
This weekend someone was shot near the Wendy's and the assailant is believed to have driven away.
It was also reported that a woman was shot in the leg.
Georgians stood by a setup of flowers and pictures, waving American flags and holding 'black life matters' signs
The spot where they stood was burned down the day after Brooks was killed by police as nearby protesters called for defunding the police
Georgia's democratic senatorial nominee Jon Ossoff wearing a protective face mask is seen next to a girl holding a sign as he arrives at the funeral
The family of Rayshard Brooks arrived earlier this afternoon, the majority of them dressed in white or in BLM shirts
People hold U.S flags outside Ebenezer Baptist Church while funeral was in progress for Rayshard Brooks
'My husband literally just missed getting caught in the crossfire when he was on his way home,' Jones said. 'And people have been shot and have been hurt.'
While in the days after Brooks was killed, protesters took the parking lot with placards showing their opposition to police brutality and systemic racism, Jones insisted the people outside Wendy's now, are not protesters.
'It's not a protest at this point,' she said. 'I use the term 'flea market' because some people are camped out, some are selling things, others are taking selfies and not actually protesting.'
Police told 11 Alive that they have a plan to get to the location back under control.
Jones said for now they're asking people to find an alternative route until they carry out a plan that doesn't worsen the situation.
'He (the police officer) asked people to stay away because, I'll use his term, the crowd has been hostile to a certain extent,' Jones said. 'He said that they are aware of what's going on, but they don't want to add fuel to the fire; to escalate things. So their advice is to stay out of that area.'
She added: 'It's physically draining, trying to figure out ways to get home, and it's emotionally draining dealing with the upheaval and the noise and the explosions. It's an emotional drain.'
As locals in Atlanta called for reforms, Reverend Bernice King, the daughter of civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr, channeled her late father at the funeral service for Rayshard Brooks. She called for a 'revolution of values' across the country to end systemic racism, nearly two weeks after the 27-year-old black man was gunned down by a white police officer.
Speaking at the invitation-only ceremony at Atlanta's Ebenezer Baptist Church that was once led by her dad, King condemned the recurring killings of black Americans at the hands of law enforcement.
'We are here because individuals continue to hide behind badges and trainings and policies and procedures rather than regarding the humanity of others in general and Black lives specifically,' Reverend King said.
She noted ruefully that Brooks' death took place in Atlanta, the 'black mecca' of America and 'the city that is supposed to be "too busy to hate."'
Reverend Bernice King, the daughter of late civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr, channeled her father as she delivered a powerful speech during Rayshard Brooks' funeral in Atlanta on Tuesday
Tomika Miller, Brooks's widow and mother of their children broke down in tears as she held her two-year-old daughter during the emotional service
The invitation-only ceremony, led by Pastor Raphael Warnock (pictured at the pulpit) took place at the historic church where Martin Luther King Jr preached until his assassination in 1968 and has now become steeped in the black struggle for civil rights
Following a funeral procession carrying Brooks' body, about 200 family members and friends gathered at Ebenezer Baptist Church to pay their final respects at the invitation-only ceremony
King, 57, who was five years old when her father was assassinated in 1968, told the mourners she was at the church for 'what feels like an all-too-familiar moment.'
She pointed out that Brooks died on the same date that NAACP leader Medgar Evers was assassinated in Mississippi in 1963 and Nelson Mandela was sentenced to life in prison in South Africa in 1964.
Brooks, 27, was shot twice in the back June 12 by Officer Garrett Rolfe after a struggle that erupted when police tried to handcuff him for being intoxicated behind the wheel of his car at a Wendy's drive-thru.
Video showed Brooks snatching a police Taser and firing it at Rolfe while running away.
Rolfe, 27, was charged with murder and jailed without bail. A second officer, Devin Brosnan, 26, was charged with aggravated assault, accused of stepping on Brooks' shoulder as he lay dying on the pavement.
Lawyers for both men said their clients' actions were justified.
The killing unfolded amid protests and scattered violence set off around the country by the case of George Floyd, the Black man who was pronounced dead May 25 after a white Minneapolis put his knee on Floyd's neck for nearly eight minutes.
Atlanta's police chief stepped down less than 24 hours after Brooks' death, and the Wendy's was burned by protesters.
While Brooks was not a member of Ebenezer Baptist, the church where King preached is a 'sanctuary for those who suffer,' Warnock said in a statement announcing the funeral plans.
Body camera footage shows white officer Garrett Rolfe speaking to Brooks the night of his death, after police were called to a Wendy's drive-thru on June 12. The confrontation, which began peacefully, later escalated into violence
Fired officer Garrett Rolfe (left in mugshot) was booked on felony murder and assorted other charges on June 18. Devin Brosnan (right) who was present but did not fire shots, is seen in a mugshot on Thursday
An afternoon bail hearing for Rolfe that would have conflicted with the funeral was canceled by a judge. Under the law, crime victims and their families are entitled to be heard at such proceedings.
Meanwhile, a new poll that finds nearly all Americans favor at least some change to the nation´s criminal justice system, and they overwhelmingly want to see clear standards on when police officers may use force and consequences for those who cross the line.
The poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research said 29 per cent think the criminal justice system needs 'a complete overhaul,' 40 per cent say it needs 'major changes,' and 25 per cent say it needs 'minor changes.' Just 5 per cent believe no changes are necessary.
On Monday, hundreds of mourners lined up for hours to pay their respects to Brooks, during a public viewing ahead of his funeral at Ebenezer Baptist Church.
Inside the church, Brooks' body was put on display wearing a pristine white tuxedo with gold accents.
Miller was among the first to approach the casket, placing a hand on Brooks' chest as she gazed down at him.
Brooks, who was shot and killed by an Atlanta police officer, is seen on display during the public viewing on Monday
Armed protesters 'take over' the streets near the Wendy's parking lot where Rayshard Brooks was killed and use crude roadblocks to prevent people from getting to their homes on the day of his funeral
![Armed protesters 'take over' the streets near the Wendy's parking lot where Rayshard Brooks was killed and use crude roadblocks to prevent people from getting to their homes on the day of his funeral]()
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June 24, 2020
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