Family of teen killed by Newnan police to make announcement
Zadarious Dorsey, 18, was shot and killed by a Newnan police officer. His family viewed body camera footage of the encounter as demonstrators gathered outside the Newnan Police Department.
NEWNAN, Ga. - Civil rights attorneys and relatives of Zadarious Dorsey plan to announce a major legal update Friday following the fatal shooting of the 18-year-old by a Newnan police officer.
What we know:
Attorneys Ben Crump, Harry Daniels and Gerald Griggs are holding a noon news conference at Roscoe Jenkins Funeral Home in Newnan.
The family has demanded accountability and raised questions about why an officer targeted Dorsey, who was not the subject of a traffic stop or suspected of an active crime.
Coweta County District Attorney Herb Cranford confirmed the criminal review focuses strictly on whether the Newnan police officer reasonably believed deadly force was necessary to protect his life.
Cranford took no position on whether the officer had legal grounds to stop Dorsey, emphasizing that Georgia self-defense statutes make reasonable suspicion legally irrelevant to justified force.
Cranford shared findings during closed-door briefings at the Coweta County Justice Center with family attorneys, local clergy, Newnan Mayor James Shepherd and Coweta County Commissioner Al Smith.
State forensic tests completed Oct. 15 confirmed Dorsey's DNA was on a Canik 9mm pistol found at the scene with an extended magazine and one chambered bullet.
The backstory:
Surveillance cameras along Cliff Circle captured the fatal confrontation, showing the entire encounter unfolded in two minutes.
At 1:11 a.m. on Oct. 3, an officer in an unmarked vehicle pulled alongside a parked car carrying Dorsey and several passengers.
The officer stepped out wearing a visible badge and a vest marked "POLICE" before ordering Dorsey to stop and calling him "Dae Dae."
The officer fired the fatal shot at 1:13 a.m. as Dorsey ran, while other passengers walked away freely and someone drove the car away at 1:23 a.m.
The officer told investigators that Dorsey drew a firearm from his waistband and ignored verbal commands to drop it before shots were fired.
The officer recognized Dorsey from three prior encounters, including an August 2023 incident at Newnan High School and two past gun arrests.
Dorsey was barred from possessing weapons under bond conditions from an Oct. 10, 2025, arrest in Coweta County and a Feb. 16 arrest in Carroll County.
Attorneys representing Dorsey's family argue the recovery of the stolen Albany handgun 42 feet diagonally ahead of his body proves he tossed the weapon and was unarmed when shot.
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What we don't know:
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation has not released the final medical examiner autopsy report detailing Dorsey's specific wounds.
State authorities have also not publicly confirmed whether Dorsey threw the weapon while running or still held it when the officer fired.
Officials have not named the Newnan police officer involved in the shooting or stated if that officer remains on administrative leave.
What's next:
GBI agents continue to conduct an independent investigation into the shooting. District Attorney Cranford stated his office will evaluate whether evidence proves beyond a reasonable doubt that a crime occurred.
Cranford noted that police body camera footage will be released to the public once the GBI completes its investigation.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from official statements released by Coweta County District Attorney Herb Cranford, public briefing records, press announcements from attorneys Ben Crump and Harry Daniels, and preliminary investigative reports from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.