UPDATE: Savannah-Chatham officer fired after shooting investigation

Savannah-Chatham police Officer Bobby Waiters has been terminated in the wake of an Internal Affairs investigation that examined his shooting of an unarmed man last year, according to police reports obtained through open records requests.

Prior to his firing, Waiters, who joined the department in 2005, had been placed on paid administrative leave since April 10, 2013. His placement on leave came after he shot Timothy Maurice Williams about 3 a.m. that morning while responding to shots fired around 44th and Barnard streets.

A grand jury in July 2013 had decided not to indict Waiters on an aggravated assault charge related to the shooting.

According to subsequent interviews with witnesses and officers, Williams and his brother had been fleeing gunshots outside a nightclub, Island Breeze, that was closing and they had jumped a fence into a home's backyard prior to Williams being shot.

Waiters had been responding to assist officers following the club shooting, when he was flagged down by a resident who he said claimed she was being burglarized.

Waiters' account of the resident's burglary claim was contradicted in a statement the resident provided, according to reports.

The resident witness at the scene clearly said in her statement that there were people in her backyard, which is nowhere close to being a burglary or robbery, Sgt. Clayton Cortes informed Maj. Dean Fagerstrom in a May 22 memo. Cortes reported that Waiters was not mentally prepared to confront the situation he was in and his perception of the incident was skewed from the start.

Also questioned during the investigation was Waiters' decision to not use his flashlight to illuminate the suspects, when, by Waiters' own admission, it took about a minute for the individuals to climb over the fence.

Cpl. Chris Boyette said in a May 13 report that Waiters' flashlight could have worked to temporarily disorient the suspect, provide valuable reaction time and provide more of a presence than simply verbally challenging him. Once the "reactionary gap" was closed, when the suspect turned toward him, Waiters choices for controlling the suspect became very limited, Boyette said.

Boyette also reported that Waiters was unsure of the proper charges to make once Williams was in custody.

Investigators and a review panel later found that the unarmed Williams did not pose an "immediate threat" and that Waiters had violated policies regarding the use of deadly force.

While Waiters was faced with making a split-second decision in a tense, uncertain and rapidly evolving situation, he reacted based on perceived circumstances and not on perceived fact, Lt. Daniel Flood wrote interim Chief Julie Tolbert on July 12. The only fact he knew at the time was that the suspect running toward him was not stopping, Flood said. Everything else was circumstantial, he said.

In addition, Waiters failed to meet a policy threshold of whether a "reasonable" officer would have reacted the same way, according to the report.

A reasonable officer who was truly concerned with shots fired in the area would have maintained a cover position, illuminated the area and waited for backup before closing in on the suspect, rather than move away from cover into a darkened area without using his flashlight as Waiters did in the situation, Flood said. All of these were in direct contradiction to training protocols and contributed "greatly" to the outcome of the incident, he said.

Waiters was notified of his suspension pending dismissal on July 18 for unsatisfactory performance and violating department policies.

Waiters' appeal of his termination was denied by City Manager Stephanie Cutter on Aug. 18.