The indictment, filed Wednesday, alleges that former Louisville officer Katie Crews violated the constitutional rights of an individual — identified only by the initials “M.M” — when she fired a pepper ball, striking the person, who was “standing on private property and not posing a threat” to other people. An attorney representing the officer declined to comment.
McAtee was shot as police and Kentucky National Guard members tried to disperse the crowd, according to police, who have said officers were returning fire after being fired upon. One video showed McAtee, 53, at the restaurant door with his right arm extended. Moments later, he is seen clutching his chest, and falling to the ground. No one has been charged in McAtee’s killing.
Steve Romines, an attorney representing the McAtee family, confirmed to CNN the individual identified by initials in the indictment is Machelle.
“We agree with the Grand Jury’s decision today that criminal activity by LMPD in the unwarranted shooting at innocent bystanders outside of YaYa’s BBQ is what directly (led) to the death of David McAtee,” the attorney told CNN in a statement Thursday.
If convicted, Crews could face up to ten years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release, according to the indictment.
The aftermath of the shooting
Crews was fired on February 7, 2022, according to Louisville police. The department declined to comment further on the matter. CNN has also reached out to the police department for an update on Allen’s status.
Louisville officers and National Guard members “were authorized to discharge their firearms in defense of human life, including their own, when they reasonably believed, based on the facts and circumstances, that Mr. McAtee posed an immediate threat of death or serious injury to them or to another person,” Wine concluded.
McAtee used to feed officers for free
“He fed all the policemen,” Riley said in June 2020. “Police would go in there and talk with him and be with him. He fed the police. He fed them (for) free.”
Fischer, the mayor, called McAtee a “wonderful citizen” in a statement following the killing.
“David was a friend to many, a well-known barbecue man,” the mayor said. “They’ve nurtured so many people in their bellies and in their hearts before, and for him to be caught up in this, not to be with us today, is a tragedy.”
In an interview that had appeared in the West of Ninth photo blog several months before the shooting, McAtee said he had been cooking and selling BBQ for roughly 30 years, and had been at his West Louisville location for about two years.
He’d always wanted to be at that location and was hoping to buy the lot and build a more permanent restaurant, he told the blog.
“I gotta start somewhere, and this is where I’m going to start,” he had said. “It might take another year or two to get to where I’m going, but I’m going to get there.”