ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) - The Albany City Commission voted to settle with a man, who alleged that an Albany Police Detective pursued him as a shooting suspect with “malicious prosecution.” The city agreed to pay Demetrius Luke $275,000 at their Tuesday meeting.

In May of 2017, Demetrius Luke was arrested after APD Detective Jameel Gulley secured warrants against him for a shooting at a home on Jackson Street in March of 2017. One man, John Lewis, allegedly drove by the house and shot into a crowd of people outside. The vehicle Lewis was driving crashed after he was shot in the head, allegedly by returned gunfire. Days later, Detective Gulley received information from a confidential witness who said Demetrius Luke’s brother, David Luke, was involved in the shooting. But when David Luke produced a verified alibi, Gulley, “deduced that the informant meant [David’s brother] Demetrius.”

In November of that same year, a grand jury returned a 20-count indictment against Demetrius Luke and several other co-defendants. Luke was charged with “the felony murder of and aggravated assault of John Lewis; aggravated assault; three counts of possessing a firearm in the commission of a felony; and violating the Street Gang Terrorism and Prevention Act.” However, the state later dismissed the charges against Luke and his co-defendants.

According to the city of Albany, litigation has been pending since that dismissal. In 2022, The Eleventh Circuit vacated a decision that was originally made at the district court level in the detective’s favor, saying “An officer who seeks an arrest warrant based on a ‘conclusory affidavit’ that ‘clearly is insufficient to establish probable cause’ is not entitled to qualified immunity,” meaning that the detective could be sued.

Today, the Albany City Commission held a special-called meeting to vote on the settlement and three other items. Every present commissioner voted “yes” without discussion to the $275,000 settlement.

As of February 4, 2025, Jameel Gulley is still employed with the Albany Police Department.

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