2 take plea deals in Atlanta Wendy’s arson following death of Rayshard Brooks

ATLANTA – Two of the three suspects charged with intentionally setting fire to the Wendy’s where police shot and killed Rayshard Brooks in the summer of 2020 have accepted a plea deal.

Natalie Hanna White, John Wesley Wade, and Chisom Kingston were indicted in January for setting fire to the Wendy’s restaurant on University Avenue in southwest Atlanta on June 13, 2020. The blaze reduced the building to rubble. Each face two counts of arson and conspiracy to commit arson.

Kingston’s attorney told FOX 5 his client accepted the plea dale in court.

Part of that deal requires that he pays a $500 fine and serve 150 hours of community service within the next 6 months.

Chisom Kingston, John Wesley Wade, and Natalie Hanna White (left to right) (Fulton County Sheriff’s Office)

Wendy’s restaurant torched during protests over death of Rayshard Brooks

Nearly two full days after the shooting death of Rayshard Brooks, a large group of protesters had gathered around the Wendy’s located along University Avenue, just off the Downtown Connector. Shortly after 9:30 p.m., flames could be seen shooting out of the closed restaurant.

Atlanta Fire Department officials said that the fire at the southwest Atlanta Wendy’s started in multiple locations using multiple incendiary methods and devices. Officials estimated that there were at least 10 attempts to set the building on fire.

In video shot that night by FOX 5, a woman can be seen wearing a pink-ish-purple jacket around her waist. She appears to have an aerosol can that she ignites as others smashed windows just seconds before the fast-food restaurant went up in flames.

An attorney said the woman in those images that investigators released is Natalie White, but that she didn’t start the fire.

Some smaller fires were seen in the immediate area of the Wendy’s as well.

According to the indictment, Wade, White, and Kingston “unlawfully, by means of fire, knowingly and intentionally damaged the building.”

The grand jury also found enough evidence to indict the trio with conspiracy to commit arson.

At least 36 people were arrested that evening, but White was apprehended June 22 and Kingston and Wade on July 2.

Officer Garrett Rolfe gives Rayshard Brooks a sobriety test moments before his deadly shooting in southwest Atlanta on June 12, 2020. (Atlanta Police Department)

Advertisement

Who was Rayshard Brooks?

In the midst of a tumultuous summer of protests responding law enforcement killings of Black Americans, an incident in Atlanta caught the nation’s attention.

Rayshard Brooks was a father of four celebrating his daughter’s birthday at an arcade on June 12, 2020, hours before he was killed in the parking lot of an Atlanta Wendy’s. Brooks had fallen asleep in his car in the drive-thru lane of a Wendy’s restaurant.

Brooks was shot dead by Atlanta Police Department Officer Garrett Rolfe, who was performing a DUI test with another officer after Brooks was found sleeping in his car while in line at Wendy’s on University Avenue. Police said Brooks attempted to evade arrest and the officers attempted to deploy their Tasers multiple times.

Brooks took a Taser away from the officer, police said, and then began to run away and eventually was able to use the Taser against the officer. Rolfe allegedly shot Brooks. An autopsy found that Brooks was shot twice in the back.

Rolfe has been charged with murder and other offenses. The other officer, Devin Brosnan, was charged with aggravated assault and violating his oath. Lawyers for both officers have said their clients acted appropriately. They are free on bond.

Rolfe was fired after the shooting but the Atlanta Civil Service Board reversed that dismissal. It found that the city failed to follow its own procedures for disciplinary actions.

The case was handed over to a special prosecutor in July 2021. In August 2022, the prosecutor overseeing the case determined the officers “committed no crimes.”

The officers announced lawsuits soon after, seeking monetary damages from the city, the former mayor and police chief. The suit claims the city violated officers’ Constitutional rights.

The shooting came at a time of heightened tension over police brutality and calls for reforms across the U.S. following the May 25 death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

Atlanta was among U.S. cities where large crowds of protesters took to the streets.