According to a public information release from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation the GBI has been called on to investigate the fatal shooting of Kennesaw man by Cobb County police, after the man allegedly opened fire on police, injuring one officer.
The shooting took place on Sunday June 13 at around 3:29 p.m.
The public information release describes the incident as follows:
Acworth, GA (June 14, 2021) – On Sunday, June 13, 2021, the GBI was requested by the Cobb County Police Department to investigate an officer involved shooting. Preliminary information indicates that at approximately 3:29 p.m., a 911 call was placed from [Address redacted by the Courier], in reference to a domestic dispute. When officers arrived at the location, a man later identified as Luis Rey Ruiz, 20, of Kennesaw, shot one of the officers. The officer returned fire and struck Ruiz and he ran from the scene. Cobb County SWAT was utilized in an effort to locate Ruiz. At approximately 6:40 p.m., Cobb County SWAT located Ruiz in the area of [Address redacted by the Courier], a short distance from the location of the original 911 call. During the incident, several members of the Cobb County SWAT fired at Ruiz, striking him. Ruiz died at the scene. A firearm was located next to Ruiz. The Cobb County Medical Examiner’s Office will perform an autopsy on Ruiz.
The Cobb County PD officer that was shot was transported to a local area hospital and is expected to recover from his injuries.
The GBI will conduct an independent investigation and once complete, will be turned over to the Cobb County District Attorney’s Office for review.
This is the 40th officer involved shooting the GBI has been requested to investigate in 2021.
The GBI’s role in officer-involved shootings
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation routinely investigates the shooting of individuals by police officers, as well as any time an officer discharges a firearm while on duty, at the request of the police agency involved in the shooting.
Natalie Ammons, the Deputy Director of the GBI’s Office of Public Affairs explained to us how the system works.
Police agencies are not required to request outside investigation of officer involved shootings, and there is no formal agreement between the GBI and local police departments.
But police agencies make the request so that an independent agency does the investigation in an incident involving their own officers.
The investigations are carried out by Special Agents in a regional office within the area where the police agency is located. Cobb County, and much of the rest of metro Atlanta, is in the GBI’s Region 10, based in Conyers.
In Region 10, officer involved shootings and corruption investigations are the primary investigations Special Agents do, while in more rural areas with fewer police resources the agents handle a wider range of criminal investigations.
There is no special unit or division that conducts the investigation of officer involved shootings.
The announcements of the investigations can be found at the GBI’s press release web page.
