The Atlanta Police Department fired an officer accused of shooting at a tourist from North Carolina near the Georgia Dome, officials confirmed.
Mathieu Cadeau was fired Thursday for excessive use of force after authorities said he shot at Noel Hall, who disregarded his commands while Cadeau was directing traffic. The officer was placed on administrative leave while state officials investigated the shooting.
Cadeau had told officials he felt his life was in danger, leading him to fire the shot, Channel 2 Action News reported. Investigators later determined his story and the physical evidence didn’t match.
"The law is clear,” Hall’s attorney, Shean Williams, told Channel 2. “You cannot fire a deadly weapon without your life or someone's life being in danger.”
Cadeau was a supervisor in the field operations division and had been with the Atlanta Police Department since July 2007.
According to the GBI,he was working an off-duty job directing traffic Feb. 25 when he encountered a white Ford F350 van driven by Hall, 46.
Cadeau was in uniform, which is standard procedure when directing traffic, Atlanta police officials said. He was wearing a traffic vest, too.
Hall disregarded the officer’s commands and drove in his direction, GBI spokeswoman Nelly Miles said at the time.
That is when Cadeau fired his gun and hit Hall, she said. Other people were inside the van but were not injured.
The van continued left onto Ivan Allen Jr. Boulevard from Northside Drive for several blocks before one of the passengers called 911, Miles said. The vehicle eventually stopped and Hall was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital, where he was treated and released.
Hall was in town for the Supercross event, Atlanta police told Channel 2. Evidence from the scene indicates he was not armed, Miles said.
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