Leonard Allan Cure, a 53-year-old Black man, found his life tragically cut short on the morning of October 16, 2023, during a traffic stop on Interstate 95 in Camden County, Georgia. This devastating event occurred just three years after he had been exonerated and freed from a Florida prison, where he had unjustly served 16 years for an armed robbery he did not commit.
Having recently received compensation for his wrongful conviction, he was in the process of buying his first home and rebuilding his life. On that Monday morning, he was driving home to the Atlanta area after visiting his mother in South Florida.
The fatal encounter began when a Camden County sheriff's deputy, Staff Sgt. Buck Aldridge, pulled Cure over for allegedly speeding and driving recklessly, reportedly at speeds over 90 miles per hour. According to law enforcement accounts and video footage, Cure initially complied with the deputy's instructions to get out of his pickup truck. The situation escalated when he was informed that he was under arrest. An argument ensued, and Cure refused to place his hands behind his back. The deputy then deployed his Taser, but Cure continued to resist.
A physical struggle broke out between the two men. The deputy used his Taser a second time and also a baton, but Cure reportedly continued to fight back, at one point grabbing the deputy's throat. It was during this altercation that the deputy drew his firearm and fired a single, fatal shot. Emergency medical technicians treated Cure at the scene, but he died from his injuries. His family believes the deputy's announcement of an arrest may have psychologically triggered him, causing him to fear another wrongful imprisonment.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation was called to look into the officer-involved shooting. In February 2025, the district attorney for the Brunswick Judicial Circuit announced that no criminal charges would be filed against Staff Sgt. Aldridge. The prosecutor concluded that the deputy's use of deadly force was 'objectively reasonable' under the circumstances, given that he was being overpowered. It was later revealed that Aldridge had been fired from a previous law enforcement job for excessive force. Cure's family has filed a federal lawsuit against the deputy and the sheriff, alleging the use of excessive force and seeking accountability for his death.
