Hours after being told he would be fired, Louisiana State Trooper Chris Hollingsworth was pronounced dead Tuesday morning as the result of a Monday one-car crash in which his vehicle drove off an interstate highway, the Associated Press reports.
Hollingsworth was being fired for his role in the death of Ronald Greene in May 2019. Hollingsworth and six other troopers reported that Greene died after driving into a tree during a high-speed chase, but evidence suggests that people on the scene “brutalized” Greene after the crash.
The incident is currently under federal investigation. The Louisiana State Police has thus far refused to release body cam footage from officers on the scene.
Greene’s family last week released photographs of the car, which showed little damage, and of Greene’s body, which showed significant bruising and cuts. The photos raised doubts if those injuries could have been sustained in a car crash.
After they initially told Greene’s family that he died in the crash, but State Police revised its statement to say Greene died “after resisting arrest and a struggle with troopers.” There were also questions raised by inconsistent reports filed by officers who stated Greene was place under arrest after the accident he supposedly died in.