Georgia Deputy Who Killed Leonard Cure Faces Civil Rights Charges
The Georgia sheriff’s deputy who shot and killed Leonard Cure during a traffic stop has been indicted on several civil rights charges in an unrelated case.
According to NBC News, a grand jury indicted Camden County Deputy Buck Aldridge on 13 counts. Aldridge faces five counts of deprivation of rights under color of law and eight counts of falsification of records stemming from incidents in 2021 and 2022. The Camden County Sheriff’s Office released a statement confirming Buck Aldridge was immediately relieved of his duties following the indictment.
“The Camden County Sheriff’s Office is committed to transparency and accountability at every level,” the statement read. I don’t know how strong that commitment to accountability can be when they hired Aldridge only nine months after being fired from another police department for throwing a woman to the ground during a traffic stop.
In 2023, Aldridge pulled over Leonard Cure for speeding. Cure served 16 years in prison for armed robbery before being exonerated in 2020. Dashcam footage of the stop shows Aldridge yelling for Cure to get out of his car and immediately putting his hands on him as soon as the stop began. Aldridge pulled out his taser and told Cure he was being arrested for speeding. Leonard Cure protested, saying that he should only receive a ticket for speeding, not an arrest. The two engaged in a brief struggle before Aldridge shot and killed Cure at point-blank range.
A Georgia prosecutor declined to bring charges against Buck Aldridge, saying that the physical struggle justified the use of deadly force. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said Cure complied with Aldridge’s orders until he found out he was being arrested. Cure’s family filed a lawsuit against Aldridge and the Camden County Sheriff’s Office for $16 million in damages as well as a separate federal lawsuit.
“I think it helps our case tremendously, considering it shows he had this propensity for excessive use of force and a propensity to lie about it on his reports,” Harry Daniels, the family’s lawyer, said when asked about the indictment.
Aldrige is accused of using a taser on a person without justification and kicking them while they were incapacitated during a 2021 traffic stop. In the same year, he allegedly tased someone while they were already handcuffed. The following year, Aldridge was accused of punching a person without legal justification and repeatedly using his taser on them after they had already stopped resisting arrest.
Buck Aldridge is also accused of filing falsified reports to justify the aggression in these cases. The indictment alleges Aldridge would leave out details of his violent conduct and, in one instance, tried to “cover up” that he struck someone in the back of the head with a taser.
Aldridge faces a maximum of 10 years in prison for each civil rights violation and 20 years for each falsified report.
“Law enforcement officers are entrusted with the authority to uphold the law—not to break it. When that trust is violated, the FBI will act. No badge puts anyone above the Constitution,” FBI Atlanta Special Agent in Charge Paul Brown said in a statement announcing the charges. “We remain committed to investigating civil rights violations and holding accountable those who abuse their power.”
The allegations against Buck Aldridge in the civil rights case reveal a pattern of deceit, aggression, and willingness to use violence. Leonard Cure’s death could’ve been avoided had the Camden County Sheriff’s Office not hired a cop who lost his job for excessive force.
SEE ALSO:
Deputy Who Killed Leonard Cure Won’t Be Charged
Exonerated Man’s Family Sues Killer Cop In Georgia
Leonard Cure: Killer Cop, PD Sued
Georgia Cop Who Killed Exonerated Man Being Sued