Video Footage To Be Released After ATL Deacon Dies In Police Struggle

ATLANTA, GA — Attorneys representing the family of Johnny Hollman, a 62-year-old driver who died after a police struggle last week, said video footage in the aftermath could be forthcoming Tuesday.

Activists supporting Hollman's family are planning a rally and march at 5 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 24, at the Atlanta Police headquarters, 226 Peachtree St. SW.

Johnny Hollman was accused of resisting arrest on Aug. 10 during an incident with the officer at the Cunningham Place/Joseph E. Lowery Boulevard intersection. The officer was at the scene to investigate a crash involving Johnny Hollman.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said the officer attempted to use a Taser on Johnny Hollman during the struggle.

"After the officer took Hollman into custody, police determined that Hollman had become unresponsive. Police called EMS personnel, and Hollman was taken to a local hospital, where he died," the GBI said in a past news release.

The GBI is investigating the case as use of force.

Attorney Mawuli Davis with the Davis, Bozeman and Johnson Law Firm, said attorneys are reviewing the footage prior to its release. Davis called the video, which shows the aftermath of the incident, "shocking and sobering."

He said the GBI and Atlanta Mayor Andre Dicken's office has been communicating with Johnny Hollman's family.

Lively Stones of God Ministries Rev. Royce L. Tillman said Johnny Hollman was a deacon and a chairman at the Atlanta church.

Johnny Hollman's family remembered him as a loving father and grandfather.

His daughter, Arnitra Hollman, said she told her father she loved him during their last conversation. Johnny Hollman had just left Bible study with his daughter, when 20 minutes later, he called Arnitra Hollman to tell her he had been involved in a car crash, she said.

"The next time I heard my daddy’s voice, I heard my daddy in distress," Arnitra Hollman said during the news conference. "I heard my daddy telling them he couldn’t breathe. I heard my daddy beg for help."

She said when she arrived at the scene, she saw her father on the ground.

"I’m having to deal with that pain every single day," Arnitra Hollman said.

She added Johnny Hollman was heading home before the crash and was the person who called the police to the scene.

Arnitra Hollman said the family is seeking answers.

"We need help," she said. "We’re crying out to the community. We’re crying out to the police department."

She noted Johnny Hollman was planning to travel this weekend to meet his grandson's Army superiors, and now, she said that will not happen.

Patch has reached out to the Atlanta Police Department for comment.