Judge upholds most serious charges in deadly arrest of Black driver Ronald Greene

FARMERVILLE, La. (AP) — A judge delivered a victory Monday to the state prosecution of white Louisiana lawmen in the deadly 2019 arrest of Ronald Greene, allowing the most serious charge of negligent homicide to go forward against a trooper captured on body-camera video dragging the Black motorist by his ankle shackles and forcing him to lie facedown in the dirt.

The case had been steeped in uncertainty in recent months after the judge dismissed obstruction charges against two other troopers, leaving three officers still facing charges.

“My heart is lifted by this," said Greene's mother, Mona Hardin. "We shouldn’t have waited four plus years, but we’re still moving forward.”

Master Trooper Kory York had sought dismissal of the negligent homicide and malfeasance charges against him after prosecutors acknowledged an extraordinary oversight in which they improperly allowed a use-of-force expert to review statements York made during an internal affairs inquiry. Such compelled interviews may be used to discipline officers administratively but are specifically shielded from use in criminal cases.