Fulton DA: MARTA officer was 'justified' in shooting death of Joetavius Stafford

• Joeff Davis/CL File
• Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard says investigation included interviews with more than 40 witnesses, review of DNA results, expert analysis

A MARTA Police officer's use of deadly force that resulted in the death of a 19-year-old man near the Vine City transit station in Oct. 2011 was "justified," according to an investigation by Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard.

On Oct. 15, 2011, MARTA Officer Robert Waldo responded to a call about a fight outside the Vine City MARTA station near the Georgia Dome, where a series of high-school football games were being played. The officer fired several shots at Joetavius Stafford, who earlier had attended the game, and struck him three times - once in the chest and twice in the back.

The killing sparked protests and outrage, as some witnesses claimed Stafford was shot in the back while lying on the ground. According to Howard's investigation, "intense interviews of several witnesses established that this assertion was simply untrue." In addition, the DA's office says, an autopsy "concluded that Stafford was likely in an upright position when the Officer's shots were fired."

In July, Stafford's family sued Waldo and MARTA for wrongful death.

The DA's office says its investigation consisted of "multiple interviews with more than 40 witnesses, a thorough review of key DNA and other scientific results, as well as expert analysis from an independent board-certified crime scene reconstructionist and blood spatter engineer."

The long statement from Howard's office about the investigation's findings begins below and continues after the jump. We'll update when we hear word from others involved in the dispute.

An examination of the series of events that occurred immediately prior to the shooting death of Joetavius Stafford provides key insight into the officer's ultimate use of deadly force. Approximately three hours before the officer-involved shooting, Joetavius Stafford and a group of friends arrived at the Georgia Dome for a local high school football game. Stafford and his group were eventually kicked out of the facility after engaging in a wild chair and fist-throwing fight with another group of men. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) discovered through phone records that just before the fight in the Dome began, Stafford asked another friend to bring him a weapon. After Stafford was expelled by Dome security, a group of three men including Stafford's brother Rodney, arrived in an area across the street from the Dome in Joetavious Stafford's own vehicle with the handgun he requested and other weapons.