‘Lucky to Be Alive’: Family of 5-Year-Old Girl Who Was Shot By Georgia Deputy In Pursuit of Unarmed Suspect Sues, Citing Pattern of Misconduct and Reckless Use of Force
The family of a 5-year-old girl shot and wounded during a police chase at a Fulton County gas station in metro Atlanta has filed a sweeping federal lawsuit against the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office and a former deputy, alleging recklessness and a history of misconduct.
The shooting happened on June 23, 2024, at a BP station on Fulton Industrial Boulevard during a high-speed pursuit of 25-year-old Rashauny Mike Palmer, who had avoided being taken into custody and led deputies on a chase from Douglas County into Fulton County before crashing near the gas station.
According to the lawsuit, obtained by Atlanta Black Star, Palmer, who was unarmed, ran to the station and climbed into the backseat of a BMW occupied by Aaliyah Adams, her daughter Skylar, and her husband. That’s when Deputy Thomas Samples opened fire, hitting Skylar in the upper right arm.
“This little girl is lucky to be alive,” said attorney Ben Crump in a statement. “Not only do we need officers like this to be held accountable, we need to hold accountable the departments that hire and protect them.”
The child’s injuries were described as non-life-threatening, and a Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) probe is ongoing, according to local media reports. The GBI later said Skylar was likely struck by a ricocheting bullet fragment.
Palmer was arrested at the scene and now faces multiple charges, including attempted murder, kidnapping, escape, terroristic threats, obstruction, and cruelty to children.
But the family and their attorneys — Crump, Bakari Sellers, and Mario Pacella — say Palmer wasn’t the biggest danger that day. Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, the lawsuit argues that Samples acted with no regard for innocent lives when he opened fire near gas pumps and into a car without determining whether anyone was in immediate danger.
“This is a failure at every level,” said Sellers. “Not only did Deputy Samples have no business shooting into that car wounding a defenseless child, he should never have been a cop in the first place.”
The lawsuit outlines a “troubling pattern” of violent and reckless behavior by Samples — both before and during his time at the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office. Prior to being hired in 2022, Samples was charged in a road rage incident in which he allegedly pointed a handgun at a young woman.
In March 2024, he was ordered to undergo remedial training after he Tased and arrested someone in their home without verifying that a crime had occurred. Later that same month, he was suspended for a dangerous high-speed pursuit, during which he ran a red light at 129 mph. On June 3, 2024, just weeks before the shooting, Samples was removed from the Emergency Response Team after failing a basic firearms qualification during SWAT training at the Georgia Public Safety Training Center.
“This isn’t a one-time mistake,” Pacella said, referring to the shooting of the young victim. “This is a history of recklessness and negligence. The fact that the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office gave Thomas Samples a badge and then let him keep it despite these documented incidents is a threat to all of us.”
The lawsuit seeks a jury trial, as well as compensatory and punitive damages. It also challenges the sheriff’s office directly, alleging it was negligent in hiring and retaining Samples despite a clear record of violent and reckless behavior.
“This little girl is lucky to be alive,” Crump repeated. “Innocent lives are at risk, and if you can’t take that seriously then you have no business wearing a badge.”
The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office declined to comment on the pending legal case, citing active litigation, according to Fox 5 Atlanta.