ATLANTA — Authorities say a routine traffic stop carried out by motorcycle police ended with a suspect in critical condition on Wednesday - after he allegedly pulled a gun on them.
Just hours after an officer-involved shooting on Memorial Drive in Atlanta, state agents were called to another shooting on the same road several miles away.
Police Chief James Conroy said his officers were pulling over a driver during routine traffic patrol - for not wearing a seatbelt - when a check of his license came back showing multiple warrants for his arrest. But officers soon found themselves in a struggle over a gun.
They attempted to take the suspect into custody on these outstanding warrant and as they approached him they observed that the driver had a handgun in his waistband," Conroy said. "The driver reached for the handgun, pulled it out and a struggle ensued over this handgun."
Conroy said the suspect fired at least once during the struggle and the officers, one a lieutenant, returned fire striking the suspect several times.
Both officers have since been placed on administrative leave as the GBI and the police department complete parallel investigations.
Conroy said that "routine" stops like the one that afternoon represent one of the riskiest everyday duties officers perform.
"As I said, this stop was for a driver not having a seatbelt, which is something - I think you would get a very minimal fine if not most likely a warning for that violation," he said. "And it escalated into a [potentially] deadly situation."
Conroy added that this is also the three-month anniversary of the shooting that claimed the life of Officer Edgar Flores.
"I get notified by page as soon as there's any shooting and especially when I see it's an officer-involved shooting, everything stops until you find out is everybody alright," Conroy said.
He said he got the same kind of page the night Flores died.
"When Officer Flores was killed three months ago today, I got that page and it was officer shot in the head," he said. "That takes a while for us to find out exactly what happened so it is a trying time."
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said they were called to a scene and that this is the 21st officer-involved shooting of the year and the third in less than 24 hours.
The 20th such shooting in Georgia happened near the intersection of Memorial Drive and Moreland around noon Wednesday. Another happened in Cherokee County involving a deputy overnight.
11Alive is working to gather more information. Check back for updates as they become available.
ALSO READ |