According to a public information release from Officer J. Aaron Wilson of the Cobb County Police Department, a suspect was wounded by gunfire from a Cobb County police officer during the pursuit of suspects in an auto breaking and entering gang.
The public information release described the incident as follows:
Smyrna, GA (September 30, 2022): On Friday, September 30, 2022, the Cobb County Police Department was involved in an officer-involved shooting on 1200 Winchester Pkwy SE Smyrna, GA 30080.
The preliminary investigation indicates that at approximately 2:23 am, Cobb County Police officers located entering auto suspects that had broken into multiple vehicles in the parking lot of the Rodeway Inn. Officers attempted to conduct a traffic stop on a black Toyota RAV4 XLE when the vehicle began to flee. Officers conducted a PIT maneuver on the vehicle, at which point all four occupants in the vehicle fled on foot. One of the suspects came out of the vehicle and pointed a handgun at officers. One officer discharged their weapon striking the suspect. The suspect continued to flee on foot with the handgun and opened a manhole cover and hid inside. The suspect was safely apprehended and transported to Kennestone Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Two other suspects were apprehended near the scene, one is still outstanding.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) has assumed responsibility for this investigation, and they will provide any updates or additional information regarding this case.
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.
