Judge Upholds Negligent Homicide Charge in Deadly Arrest of Ronald Greene

A Louisiana judge is allowing the most serious charge of negligent homicide to go forward against one of the troopers involved in the deadly 2019 arrest of Ronald Greene, reports Jim Mustian for the Associated Press. Master Trooper Kory York was captured on body-camera video dragging the Black motorist by his ankle shackles and forcing him to lie facedown in the dirt.

York had sought dismissal of the negligent homicide and malfeasance charges against him after it was revealed that prosecutors improperly allowed a use-of-force expert to review statements York made during an internal affairs inquiry, which are specifically shielded from use in criminal cases. However, Judge Thomas Rogers ruled that the circumstances did not taint York’s indictment and that the use-of-force expert drew their conclusions from body-camera footage, not the interview itself. The ruling comes amid new calls for the U.S. Justice Department to bring its own indictment against the troopers.