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Nygil Cullins

Age : 22

Gender : Male

Race : Black

Date : 05/18/2022

Location : 3101 Piedmont Road NE, Fogo de Chão

City : Atlanta

County : Fulton

State : Georgia

Agency : Atlanta Police Department

Officer(s) :Andrew Strutt, Alex Luebbehusen

Cause of Death : Gunshot

Event : Killed by police during mental health crisis at restaurant

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

On 05/18/2022, Nygil Cullins, 22, was experiencing a mental health crisis. His parents said they were with him earlier that day and recognized that he was delusional and needed treatment. His mother arranged for a bed at a mental health facility and called 911 requesting assistance transporting him there. According to the family, emergency responders did not arrive for nearly two hours, and Cullins left before they arrived.
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Cullins later went to Fogo de Chão at 3101 Piedmont Road NE in Atlanta, where he had previously worked. He was legally carrying a handgun in a belt holster, according to his family's subsequent federal lawsuit. Restaurant employees contacted 911. The initial call reported problems with Cullins, and a subsequent call informed dispatch that he had a firearm.
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Atlanta Police Officers Andrew Strutt and Alex Luebbehusen entered the restaurant and approached Cullins while he was seated at the bar. Body-camera footage eventually released by Atlanta police shows Cullins raising his hands as the officers approached. During the ensuing encounter, Cullins went to the floor and Strutt deployed his Taser.
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Cullins then got up and moved toward the restaurant exit. Restaurant security guard Tyler Huffman tackled him near the doorway. Police alleged that Cullins pulled his handgun and fired, striking Huffman. Cullins' family disputes the police characterization of the shooting and alleged in its federal lawsuit that the gun discharged during the struggle when Huffman tackled Cullins and grabbed for the weapon.
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Strutt and Luebbehusen opened fire. A subsequent Atlanta Police Department internal investigation determined that Strutt fired three rounds and Luebbehusen fired 15 rounds. The body-camera footage shows an initial series of gunshots followed by additional shots as Cullins remained on the floor and continued moving. Cullins died from the gunshot wounds.
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The Georgia Bureau of Investigation investigated the killing and submitted the case for prosecutorial review. The Fulton County District Attorney's Office spent approximately two and a half years reviewing the case before deciding not to pursue criminal charges against Strutt or Luebbehusen.
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Cullins' parents and the Georgia NAACP repeatedly challenged the police account and demanded public release of the body-camera footage. In March 2023, family members, supporters and the NAACP protested outside Fogo de Chão and demanded that the Fulton County District Attorney act on the case. Georgia NAACP President Gerald Griggs, who had viewed footage, publicly questioned the number and sequencing of the shots fired at Cullins.
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On 05/17/2024, Cullins' parents, Mya and Quinten Cullins, filed a federal civil-rights and wrongful-death lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. The defendants included the City of Atlanta, Strutt, Luebbehusen, Fogo de Chão and Valor Protection Security Agency. The complaint alleged excessive and unjustified force, inadequate police training and supervision, negligence and other violations. The family alleged that Cullins posed no threat when officers initially confronted him, that Strutt used the Taser without justification, and that the security guard's actions caused Cullins' handgun to discharge.
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After approximately two years of demands from the family, Atlanta police publicly released body-camera footage, surveillance video and 911 audio in June 2024. The release allowed the public to see the confrontation from the officers' perspective and showed Cullins raising his hands when officers approached, the physical encounter and Taser deployment, his movement toward the exit, the security guard tackling him, the shooting of the guard and the subsequent police gunfire.
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Days after the footage was released, Cullins' family, friends, supporters and members of the Georgia NAACP again demonstrated outside Fogo de Chão, chanting for justice and briefly blocking traffic on Piedmont Road. Police briefly detained Cullins' mother, Mya Cullins, during the protest before releasing her. Another demonstrator was arrested after police said he stood in the roadway.
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The case remained under review by Atlanta's civilian police oversight system for years. In March 2026, the Atlanta Citizen Review Board finally completed its investigation, making Cullins' death the first police shooting the board had completed reviewing in approximately five and a half years. The board unanimously concluded that Strutt and Luebbehusen's gunfire complied with Atlanta Police Department policy and did not constitute excessive force. During deliberations, a board member specifically questioned whether Luebbehusen needed to fire 15 rounds, including a second series of shots, before ultimately voting with the other members to clear him.
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The prolonged review itself became part of a broader controversy surrounding Atlanta's police oversight system. The Citizen Review Board had been criticized for failing to investigate dozens of police shootings and deaths despite an expansion of its authority following the 2020 killing of Rayshard Brooks. Cullins' family was among the families left waiting years for a completed civilian review.
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OFFICER BACKGROUND:
Atlanta Police Department's internal investigation determined that Andrew Strutt fired three rounds and Alex Luebbehusen fired 15 rounds during the killing of Cullins. The department completed its internal investigation in 2024 and found their actions within policy.
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In March 2026, the Atlanta Citizen Review Board independently reviewed the shooting and unanimously cleared both Strutt and Luebbehusen of excessive-force allegations. The board specifically examined Luebbehusen's second series of shots before concluding that his actions were justified under department policy.
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Strutt was subsequently promoted to investigator in early 2026.
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Luebbehusen left the Atlanta Police Department and subsequently continued working in law enforcement in St. Petersburg, Florida.

SOURCE LINKS :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38d5Z9q4vrQ
https://www.atlantanewsfirst.com/2024/06/10/bodycam-footage-be-released-2022-police-shooting-that-killed-man-buckhead-restaurant/
https://www.atlantanewsfirst.com/2024/05/23/parents-man-shot-killed-by-police-file-lawsuit-against-apd-officers-buckhead-restaurant/
https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/buckhead-steakhouse-2022-shooting-video-expected-released-monday
https://gbi.georgia.gov/press-releases/2022-05-19/gbi-investigates-officer-involved-shooting-atlanta
https://www.atlantapd.org/home/showpublisheddocument/4850/637889839606870000
https://www.atlantanewsfirst.com/2023/03/19/family-atlanta-man-killed-buckhead-restaurant-demands-action/
https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/nygil-cullins-police-shooting-buckhead-lawsuit-atlanta
https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/buckhead-steakhouse-2022-shooting-apd-defends-response-family-friends-protests
https://www.atlantanewsfirst.com/2024/06/15/mother-man-shot-killed-buckhead-restaurant-reportedly-detained-during-protest/
https://www.ajc.com/news/crime/family-files-lawsuit-in-2022-fatal-police-shooting-inside-buckhead-restaurant/IVWSM3EV7JAYPLOQ4GA4UPMWTI/
https://www.ajc.com/news/2026/03/6-years-after-rayshard-brooks-atlanta-begins-public-review-of-police-shootings/
https://dockets.justia.com/docket/georgia/gandce/1%3A2024cv02188/329824
https://www.naacpatlanta.com/post/atlanta-naacp-demands-release-of-video-as-nygil-cullins-family-files-lawsuit-against-atlanta-police
https://www.naacpatlanta.com/post/standing-together-for-justice-naacp-protest-for-nygil-cullins