FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — A federal court judge has ordered Fulton County to not move forward with the murder case surrounding the death of Jamarion Robinson, a man who was shot 59 times while law enforcement served a warrant, records show.
In an order filed on Oct. 25, a judge said the state can no longer handle the murder case against two law enforcement officers in the 2016 death of Robinson.
Kristopher Hutchens and Eric Heinze were both on the Marshals Regional Task Force while serving an arrest warrant on behalf of the Gwinnett County Police Department and Atlanta Police Department in 2016. The warrant was over incidents in which Robinson allegedly poured gas on the floor beneath his bed and in front of his mother’s bedroom and for allegedly pointing a gun at officers while being confronted at a friend’s apartment complex.
Heinze was working as a Marshal while Hutchens, a Clayton County Police Department officer, was participating on the task force. Their legal teams have argued the case should be heard in federal court since the law enforcement officers were acting in a federal capacity.
In the court filing, the judge agreed - moving the case to federal court. The order now suspends the Fulton County proceedings.
Heinze and Hutchens would plan to seek immunity as federal officers in the higher court, a strategy the Fulton County District Attorney's Office has opposed. The office did not offer a statement in the wake of the federal judge's ruling nor did it say if it would work on an appeal.
Documents show a pre-trial hearing is scheduled for Nov. 15.
More on Jamarion Robinson
The 26-year-old was killed on August 6, 2016, while inside his girlfriend's East Point apartment.
Authorities had a warrant out for Robinson's arrest, with the local U.S. Marshals Regional Task Force responding to take him into custody at the request of Gwinnett County and Atlanta police departments. They said a few weeks earlier he had poured gas on the floor beneath his bed and in front of his mother's bedroom. According to the warrant, a friend stopped him before anything happened.
A medical examiner's report revealed Robinson had 76 bullet wounds from being shot 59 times, with some of the bullets creating both entry and exit wounds.
Authorities said he had a gun. At the time, U.S. Marshals and law enforcement assisting them were not required to wear body cameras.
Robinson's mother said she called the police - not to have him arrested - but to get him mental health treatment. He had been recently diagnosed as paranoid schizophrenic.
The U.S. Department of Justice originally cleared the task force of wrongdoing, but a Fulton County grand jury brought the indictment against Hutchens and Heinze.
Robinson's mother, Monteria, also filed a civil lawsuit against the two officers, accusing them of excessive force. She believes at least one officer shot her son while he was incapacitated. In August, a federal appeals court ruled the case could go to trial, ruling that sovereign immunity did not extend to shooting an unconscious suspect.