Federal prosecutors won't seek charges in deadly arrest of Black motorist Ronald Greene

Federal prosecutors informed the family on Tuesday that they will not be filing charges in the fatal 2019 arrest of Black motorist Ronald Greene, marking the end of a long-running FBI investigation into the white state troopers involved. These troopers were accused of stunning, beating, and dragging Greene on the roadside, and of a Louisiana state police cover-up.

The U.S. Justice Department’s notification to Greene’s family coincides with the imminent release of a broader civil rights investigation. According to two officials familiar with the matter, who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss details publicly, the investigation has found a pattern of excessive force by state troopers. An announcement is expected later this week.

The “pattern or practice” investigation, launched in 2022, stemmed from an Associated Press investigation that found Greene’s arrest was one of many instances where state troopers and their superiors ignored or concealed evidence of beatings, evaded accountability, and thwarted efforts to root out misconduct within the agency. In one case, a white trooper struck a Black man 18 times with a flashlight after a traffic stop, resulting in a fractured jaw, broken ribs, and head injuries.

“It’s not over here,” Greene’s mother, Mona Hardin, told the Associated Press after meeting with prosecutors. She added, “I knew this would happen. They’re just putting lipstick on a pig.” The AP’s reporting also exposed state trooper violence against white suspects, including one man beaten beyond recognition. Troopers shared photos of the man in mocking text messages, saying he “shouldn’t have resisted” and joking that his injuries were from a fall after his 2019 arrest.

Federal prosecutors launched grand jury investigations into some of these cases, but most ultimately ended without indictments. In the Greene case, they have for years wavered on whether to charge the troopers who were captured on body camera footage swarming Greene after a high-speed chase outside of Monroe, Louisiana. The bodycam video shows officers swarming Greene even as he held up his hands, begged for mercy, and wailed, “I’m your brother! I’m scared! I’m scared!” Troopers repeatedly tased him even before he could get out of his car, with one slamming him to the ground, applying a chokehold, and punching him in the face. Another trooper called him a “stupid son of a bitch.”

They then ordered the handcuffed Greene to lie face down on the ground, a prone position that experts say can severely restrict breathing. State police initially blamed the 49-year-old’s death on a car crash following a high-speed chase for a traffic violation. But photos of Greene on a stretcher showing a bruised and battered face, hospital reports noting two Taser marks on his back, and only minor damage to his SUV all cast doubt on that explanation. Even an emergency room doctor questioned the troopers’ initial car crash story, writing in his notes, “This does not add up.”

An FBI-ordered second autopsy ultimately debunked the car crash claim and listed “prone restraint” as among other contributing factors in Greene’s death, including neck compression, struggling limbs, and cocaine use. For years, federal charges appeared imminent, so much so that federal prosecutors asked local district attorneys to hold off on state charges until the FBI’s investigation was complete. They later reversed course, and in late 2022, a state grand jury indicted five officers on charges including negligent homicide and malfeasance.

The state cases ultimately resulted in charges against only two troopers, one of whom dragged Greene by his ankle shackles and pleaded no contest last year to a misdemeanor battery charge. The only remaining defendant in that case is scheduled to enter a similar plea this week, bringing the state proceedings to a close. A major obstacle to federal charges may have been the unfortunate death of Chris Hollingsworth, the trooper seen repeatedly striking Greene in the head with a flashlight, who was later recorded on his own bodycam telling another trooper, “I beat the ever-living hell out of him.” Hollingsworth died in a high-speed single-car crash in 2020, hours after being told he would be fired for his actions in Greene’s death.

Another major sticking point was whether prosecutors could prove the troopers acted “willfully” in abusing Greene—a key component of civil rights charges that has complicated such prosecutions across the country. The FBI even enhanced the arrest video in an attempt to determine if Greene was pepper-sprayed while in custody, but ultimately could not conclude definitively. They focused on a conversation in which one deputy is heard mockingly saying, “That shit hurts, doesn’t it?” But the federal investigation also included a long-running probe into alleged obstruction of justice by state police brass, who were suspected of suppressing video evidence, overruling a detective’s recommendation to arrest one trooper, and pressuring a state prosecutor.

A federal wrongful death lawsuit filed by Greene’s family four years ago is still pending, seeking damages from the troopers involved, who deny wrongdoing. The civil case has been largely on hold pending the outcome of the criminal proceedings.