ATLANTA (AP) — A grand jury on Monday declined to indict an former Atlanta police officer on manslaughter charges in the death of a church deacon who died in a struggle with the officer following a minor car crash.
After hearing the case, Fulton County grand jurors rejected criminal charges against Kiran Kimbrough, said Jeff DiSantis, a spokesperson for Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.
Johnny Hollman Sr. died in August 2023 after he refused to sign a citation following a wreck. Family members said the 62-year-old Hollman was driving home from Bible study at his daughter’s house and taking dinner to his wife when he collided with another vehicle while turning across a busy street just west of downtown.
Body camera video of Hollman’s arrest shows Kimbrough repeatedly demanding that Hollman sign the citation, while Hollman insists he did nothing wrong. The two men tussled and Hollman ended up face down on the ground with Kimbrough over him, pressing him down. Holloman repeatedly says “I can’t breathe,” and Kimbrough uses a Taser to shock him repeatedly. The video also shows a tow truck driver helping Kimbrough.
Hollman became unresponsive and was declared dead at a hospital. An autopsy determined the death was a homicide, with heart disease also a contributing factor.
Lance LoRusso, who represents Kimbrough, said prosecutors sought to indict his client for one count of manslaughter, one count of simple battery and three counts of violating his oath of office. Kimbrough testified before the grand jury, as is an officer's right under state law, LoRusso said.
“While Johnny Hollman's death was tragic, in no way did Kiran Kimbrough cause the death,” LoRusso said in a statement Monday. “Johnny Hollman's death was caused by medical complications and his felonious, unlawful resistance of a uniformed officer performing his lawful duties.”
DiSantis said Willis is conferring with prosecutors and investigators about whether to ask a new grand jury to indict Kimbrough.
Hollman's family members have repeatedly called for the former officer to be criminally charged.
A statement from lawyers attributed to the family said they were “devastated” by the grand jury's decision not to indict.
“The failure to hold this officer accountable is another painful reminder of how little value is placed on his life by some citizens,” the statement said. “Our faith and our fight for justice will not waver.”
Atlanta officials fired Kimbrough, saying he should have agreed to Hollman's request to speak to a supervisor. A civil service board upheld the firing, and the Atlanta City Council agreed to settle a lawsuit by Hollman's family alleging excessive force for $3.8 million. The family also sued the tow truck driver and his employer, saying the driver straddled Hollman's head and neck for at least 20 seconds and appeared to “sit with his full body weight” on Hollman's head and neck while Kimbrough handcuffed Hollman.
Atlanta and some other police departments have enacted policies saying that officers should no longer arrest people who refused to sign citations. State lawmakers passed a bill that would have enacted such a policy statewide earlier this year, but Gov. Brian Kemp vetoed it because he opposed a provision unrelated to collecting signatures from people named on citations.
This image from bodycam video provided by the Atlanta Police Department shows Johnny Hollman Sr. speaking with Officer Kiran Kimbrough on Aug. 10, 2023, in Atlanta. (Atlanta Police Department via AP)
BEIJING (AP) — Breaking with the United States, Canada has agreed to cut its 100% tariff on Chinese electric cars in return for lower tariffs on Canadian farm products, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Friday.
Carney made the announcement after two days of meetings with Chinese leaders. He said there would be an initial cap of 49,000 vehicles on Chinese EV exports to Canada, growing to 70,000 over five years. China will reduce its tariff on canola seeds, a major Canadian export, from about 84% to about 15%, he told reporters.
“It has been a historic and productive two days,” Carney said, speaking outside against the backdrop of a traditional pavilion and a frozen pond at a Beijing park. “We have to understand the differences between Canada and other countries, and focus our efforts to work together where we’re aligned.”
Earlier Friday, he and Chinese leader Xi Jinping pledged to improve relations between their two nations after years of acrimony.
Xi told Carney in a meeting at the Great Hall of the People that he is willing to continue working to improve ties, noting that talks have been underway on restoring and restarting cooperation since the two held an initial meeting in October on the sidelines of a regional economic conference in South Korea.
“It can be said that our meeting last year opened a new chapter in turning China–Canada relations toward improvement,” China's top leader said.
Carney, the first Canadian prime minister to visit China in eight years, said better relations would help improve a global governance system that he described as “under great strain.”
He called for a new relationship “adapted to new global realities” and cooperation in agriculture, energy and finance.
Those new realities reflect in large part the so-called America-first approach of U.S. President Donald Trump. The tariffs he has imposed have hit both the Canadian and Chinese economies. Carney, who has met with several leading Chinese companies in Beijing, said ahead of his trip that his government is focused on building an economy less reliant on the U.S. at what he called “a time of global trade disruption.”
A Canadian business owner in China called Carney's visit game-changing, saying it re-establishes dialogue, respect and a framework between the two nations.
“These three things we didn’t have,” said Jacob Cooke, the CEO of WPIC Marketing + Technologies, which helps exporters navigate the Chinese market. “The parties were not talking for years.”
Canada had followed the U.S. in putting tariffs of 100% on EVs from China and 25% on steel and aluminum under former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Carney’s predecessor.
China responded by imposing duties of 100% on Canadian canola oil and meal and 25% on pork and seafood. It added a 75.8% tariff on canola seeds last August. Collectively, the import taxes effectively closed the Chinese market to Canadian canola, an industry group has said. Overall, China's imports from Canada fell 10.4% last year to $41.7 billion, according to Chinese trade data.
China is hoping Trump’s pressure tactics on allies such as Canada will drive them to pursue a foreign policy that is less aligned with the United States. The U.S. president has suggested Canada could become America's 51st state.
Carney departs China on Saturday and visits Qatar on Sunday before attending the annual gathering of the World Economic Forum in Switzerland next week. He will meet business leaders and investors in Qatar to promote trade and investment, his office said.
Associated Press business writer Chan Ho-him in Hong Kong contributed to this report.
Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, center, arrives to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian, Pool)
Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, left, meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)
Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, left, shakes hands with China's President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)
