Georgia State Troopers Involved in Fatal Shooting of ‘Cop City’ Protester Manual Terán Will Face No Charges

None of the Georgia state troopers involved in the shooting death of 26-year-old environmental activist Manuel Terán earlier this year will face criminal charges, the Mountain Circuit District Attorney's Office announced Friday.

Terán, also knows as “Tortuguita,” was killed by police on Jan. 18 as officers raided campgrounds occupied by environmentalists protesting the development of the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center, which critics had dubbed "Cop City."

Terán had at least 57 bullet wounds.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said in a statement on Friday that the "use of lethal (deadly) force by the Georgia State Patrol was objectively reasonable under the circumstances of this case. No criminal charges will be brought against the Georgia State Patrol Troopers involved in the shooting of Manuel Perez Terán."

Officials claimed that Terán (whose pronouns are they/them), was the first to fire at a state trooper, which prompted officers to shoot back. An autopsy of Terán obtained by ABC News, however, showed that the activist didn’t have gunpowder residue on their hands.

Mountain Judicial Circuit District Attorney George Christian said in the Friday statement that troopers used a “less lethal” device known as a pepperball launcher in an effort to force Terán from a tent. 

“Terán responded by shooting four times his 9 mm pistol through the tent, striking and seriously injuring a Georgia State Trooper. Six Troopers returned fire resulting in the death of Terán,” Christian wrote.

Terán’s family attorney Brian Spears called Christian’s report “a rubber stamp of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation's version of events without any critical analysis,” according to the Associated Press.

Terán’s mother, Belkis Terán, flatly rejected Christian’s report.

“We have waited eight months for the truth,” she said.  “We are in pain. We want to hear the interviews. We want our experts to review the lab tests. We want our questions answered. This report does not answer our questions. How long must we wait?”

There were gunshot wounds in Terán's hands, torso, legs and head, according to the autopsy obtained by ABC News. The DeKalb County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled the death a homicide.

In the Friday report, Christian named the state troopers who shot Terán: Mark Lamb, Jonathan Salcedo, Bryland Myers, Ronaldo Kegel, Royce Zah and Jerry Parrish — the trooper that Terán allegedly shot.

The Georgia Attorney General’s Office has launched its own investigation into the fatal shooting, noted the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

Update 10/6/2023, 5:21 p.m. ET: this article has been updated with additional information.