DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — The family of a veteran killed at a DeKalb VA hospital in January, spoke one day after the district attorney's office decided the shooting was justified and it would not prosecute the case.
Army veteran John Robert Smith, Jr., 58, was killed back in January. He had gone to the VA hospital seeking help with his mental health.
On Thursday, the district attorney's office said it has decided not to charge the officer who shot and killed Smith.
"Although Mr. Smith’s death was a tragedy, the evidence shows that under the law, the officer who shot Mr. Smith was justified in his use of force and he will not be charged. Our office has now closed this case," the DA's office said in a news release.
At a press conference on Friday morning, Smith's family said the DA's Office showed them parts of the bodycam video from the shooting.
"A couple things we want to address is what exactly happened that night dealing with the staff at the VA hospital," Smith's family said at the press conference. "Because they said he (Smith) lunged at someone. He (Smith) didn't lunge at anyone. The man who said he (Smith) lunged at him was the man who shot him. When Mr. Smith went in the room, he didn't know that guy was behind him."
Smith's family said they want another attorney to review the bodycam video.
"We just want to set the record straight. We're not finished with it," they said. "We want to go forward."
John Robert Smith's mom, Onnie Smith, also spoke at the press conference.
"He didn't deserve to die like that," she said.
Onnie said their family will continue to move forward to get justice.
"I go forward," she said. "We're gonna do what we have to do to get justice for John. That was my oldest child."
"There should be some type of protocol in place when things happen. The VA should be educating their workers how to treat the vets. They need to know how to treat them," Onnie added. "They served this country, they went off and fought for this country... So we, as a family, we're going to continue to do what we need to do to get some justice for John."
You can re-watch the family's press conference below:
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What we know from officials
Smith, 58, was killed back in January. He had gone to the VA hospital with a mental health illness.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said hospital staff took Smith into the emergency room for assistance. He then pulled out a knife and threatened to harm himself.
As VA Police officers attempted to get Smith to put the knife down, he refused and eventually advanced toward a staff member with the weapon.