The September 2014 Laurens County drug raid that led to the death of David Hooks was illegal and never should have happened, says a federal lawsuit filed by his widow Tuesday.
Teresa Hooks claims that Laurens County investigators took false information from a "known meth addict" and never verified his tips.
One of them knowingly gave false or misleading information to a magistrate judge to obtain a search warrant, the suit says.
And Sheriff William Harrell had "personal resentment" against Hooks and planned to use the raid to seize his assets, according to the lawsuit.
Officers shot and killed Hooks during the raid on the night of Sept. 23, 2014.
Last June, a special prosecutor said a grand jury found there wasn't enough evidence for criminal charges in the case.
Teresa Hooks' wrongful-death lawsuit was filed Tuesday at Dublin federal court Mitchell Shook, the family's lawyer.
The lawsuit gives this description of how the raid and fatal shooting happened:
The raid was based on information from a man described in the lawsuit as a meth addict.
On the morning of the raid, the lawsuit says,the man was arrested after stealing guns and a Lincoln Navigator from Hooks' property.
When arrested, the lawsuit says, he had methamphetamine and scale, and told officers that he stole that from a truck on Hooks' property.
Investigators never verified that or found out whether there was a such a truck at Hooks home before getting a search warrant, the suit says.
An investigator gave a magistrate judge "false and misleading" information about the tipster and Hooks' past, the suit says.
The lawsuit argues that the raid itself was "unprofessional" and incompetent.
Although the magistrate authorized a "knock and announce" warrant, the suit says, officer burst in the back door and began firing through the floor, walls and ceiling.
The couple, whose home was burglarized the night before, did not realize at first that the "gang dressed in dark hooks" were officers.
Deputies fired 23 shots inside the house, three of them hitting Hooks, the suit says. One of them struck Hooks when he was on the floor, according to the suit.
The lawsuit argues that the sheriff's office violated the couple's civil rights, caused them both pain and suffering, and caused Hooks' wrongful death.
Teresa Hooks is asking for a trial on the case and says damages should set at trial.