Rayshard Brooks death: Stepmother of officer Garrett Rolfe involved in shooting black man fired from her job
The stepmother of former Atlanta police officer Garrett Rolfe, who was allegedly involved in the fatal shooting of Rayshard Brooks last week, has been fired from her job. Melissa Rolfe was working as a human resources director at an Atlanta-based mortgage company. Equity Prime Mortgage fired Melissa as she allegedly violated company policy and created an uncomfortable working environment for her colleagues.
Fox News' Tucker Carlson, who hosts ‘Tucker Carlson Tonight’, first reported the news on Thursday night, June 18. Carlson said a "source familiar with the matter" said Melissa “was promised that her job was safe, but today she was told, and we're quoting, 'We have to terminate our relationship with you.' No other explanation was offered.” Carlson said, "apparently," her "only crime was being officer Rolfe's stepmother." He also stated that Melissa’s name has been removed from the company's website as well, The Washington Examiner reported.
Equity Prime Mortgage later released a statement explaining why Melissa was let go from the company. The statement read: “As an employer, it is imperative to maintain a safe environment for all employees. Melissa Rolfe's termination was a direct result of her actions in the workplace and a violation of company policy. While working with Melissa as she transitioned to a leave of absence granted by our organization, we discovered she violated company policy and created an uncomfortable working environment for many of our employees.
“As an HR director, she ultimately lost the confidence of her peers, leadership, and many employees who no longer felt comfortable engaging with her. We value the diversity of thought and respect Melissa's personal views and the views of all employees; however, when those views create a hostile working environment, we must make difficult decisions.” However, the company did not elaborate in its statement what Melissa did to violate company policy.
Meanwhile, another report has said that Garrett, who allegedly shot and killed Brooks at a Wendy's parking lot, has been charged with felony murder on Wednesday, June 17. On the other hand, Devin Brosnan, the other officer at the scene has been charged with aggravated assault.
The 27-year-old Brooks was sleeping in his car in the drive-thru lane of a Wendy's on Friday, June 12, when Garrett and Brosnan approached him. They first calmly talked to the black father-of-four for more than 20 minutes. However, when Brooks resisted arrest during a sobriety check and began to run away after snatching one of the officer's tasers, the officers followed him. Shortly afterward, Garrett allegedly shot Brooks, who later died at the hospital after undergoing surgery.
According to reports, Garrett faces a total of 11 charges, two of which, are for aggravated assault related to a bullet he shot that hit an occupied vehicle nearby. While Brosnan faces three charges that include two counts of violations of oath of office. Brooks' wife Tomika Miller had previously said she wants both officers involved in the shooting to go to jail. "I want them to deal with the same thing as if it was my husband who killed someone else. If it was my husband who shot them, he would be in jail. He would be doing a life sentence. They need to be put away," Miller added.