WALTON COUNTY, Ga. — New details suggest deputies were forced to shoot and kill a man wanted on out-of-state warrants on Thursday when he moved "aggressively" toward them while a gun.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) released a preliminary report on Friday regarding how the shooting occurred as they begin their independent review as requested by the Walton County Sheriff's Office.
The GBI reports that just before 5 p.m. on Thursday, deputies went to an address off of Blackberry Cove Lane near Monroe Georgia where they intended to serve an out-of-state felony warrant.
But upon arriving at the location, deputies said they were confronted by the suspect in question who was armed with a handgun.
"The deputies gave verbal commands for him to put the gun down," the GBI said in a statement. "The man fired the gun into the ceiling of the residence during the standoff."
Deputies told the agency that the man, at one point, put down the gun but then picked it up again and "made an aggressive move" toward the deputies.
"The deputies fired their weapons, striking the man," the GBI reports.
Authorities identified the man as Ted Frank Tippy, 52, and said that he died at the scene. The GBI Crime Lab in DeKalb County will ultimately handle an autopsy in the case.
Tippy has ties to Maryland and West Virginia, according to the GBI.
Meanwhile, the GBI, which was called in around 8 p.m., reports that no deputies were injured.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with all involved," the Walton County Sheriff's Office posted to Facebook on Friday. "Deputies have to make difficult, life-changing decisions. They are never simple. Keep us in your thoughts."
The shooting is one of three involving law enforcement that occurred on Thursday alone. Two others also happened throughout the day - one in Barrow County and the other in Forsyth County.
The GBI is investigating those as well and, in each case, is turning the findings over to the district attorneys over the respective areas once their probe is complete.
