GBI Investigates Four Officer Involved Shootings Since Friday
ATLANTA, Ga. (CW69 News at 10/CNN) – The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) is investigating four officer involved shootings over the weekend.
Waycross
Two police officers in Georgia are on administrative leave after shooting at five minors during a vehicle stop Saturday morning.
The officers are on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation, a news release from Waycross Police said. Waycross is in south Georgia.
No one was injured or killed in the shooting, but a 16-year-old was treated by EMS for minor injuries after an altercation with officers, a release from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said.
It is just one of four officer-involved shootings since Friday night being investigated by the GBI, news releases on the GBI website show.
The investigations into all three incidents, which occurred in John's Creek, Norcross and Screven County, are ongoing, according to the GBI.
Waycross Police observed a car making a traffic violation around 8 a.m. Saturday and attempted to obtain the license plate information for the car, according to a news release from the GBI. Inside the car there were five minors, ages 9, 12, 14, 15 and 16.
As the vehicle approached the area of Walters and Greenwood Street, three minors (ages 9, 12, and 14) exited the vehicle and ran off while the vehicle stopped.
An officer began to approach the vehicle from the front, the vehicle drove towards him. The officer fired shots "multiple times" at the car with the other two minors, ages 15 and 16, inside, before the boys "exited the vehicle while it was still in drive," the GBI release said.
The 16-year-old was arrested for possession of a handgun by a person under 18, reckless driving, a stop sign violation, aggravated assault on a police officer, and driving without a driver's license, the Waycross Police news release said.
There was an altercation between one of the officers and the 15-year-old male that had exited the vehicle. The 15-year-old was charged with possession of a handgun by a person under 18, obstruction of an officer (felony), and removal or attempt to remove firearm from an officer, according to the Waycross Police release.
CNN affiliate WJXT spoke with Dominique Goodman Sr., the father of the children involved, and the three youngest children involved in the incident.
The five children in the car were headed back from Walmart when the officer began following them, Goodman told WJXT. The officer didn't turn on his lights to pull them over until they reached their neighborhood, according to the three youngest children.
The older teens were scared and told the three youngest to jump out of the car and run home to get their father, the 12-year-old told WJXT. When they got out of the vehicle, the girl said the officers started shooting at them, the affiliate reported.
At least seven shots were fired by the officer, the 9-year-old boy told WJXT. "It went passed my face," the boy told the affiliate. "I could have gotten shot in my face, but they shot the swing."
"They shot at a car full of unarmed minors. A car full of unarmed children. Like who in the world can't see that this is a 9-year-old? Who can't see that this is a child? They look like children," Goodman told WJXT. "They are babies. What was the purpose of the shooting?"
Goldman heard the gunfire and saw the children running toward the house screaming for help, WJXT reported.
"We go in the back, we open the door, we see my 9-year-old, my 12-year-old and 14-year-old running from the police behind them, gunshots coming behind them," Goodman told the affiliate. "We go down the street and we see our 15-year-old and our 16-year-old on the ground."
The children were coming home to pick up Goodman, he told the affiliate. They were all heading to a football tournament in Jacksonville that two of the children were scheduled to play in on Saturday, WJXT reported.
"This is a good neighborhood. All the neighbors are basically kin. To hear gunshots in this neighborhood and to see that it's our kids being shot at, at everybody in the neighborhood knows our kids. They know they're not bad kids," Goodman told WJXT. "Our kids almost lose their lives to go to a football game? Man, that's crazy. That's crazy. Almost lost their lives going to a football game."
Norcross
On Saturday, Gwinnett County Police (GCPD) responded to a 911 call reporting a woman screaming for help inside an apartment, according to a GBI press release.
GCPD officers located the residence at Jackson Creek Apartments where he encountered the woman in the doorway. The officer also encountered a male, identified as Ramon Guillen, 47, of Norcross, at which point the officer observed the two struggling. Guillen was armed with a gun.
"During the incident, the GCPD officer fired his service weapon, striking Guillen. The officer then reportedly pulled the female from the residence, while Guillen slammed the front door," according to the release.
The GBI Release said "Other GCPD officers arrived and secured the area around the apartment. GCPD SWAT later made entry into the home, but Guillen was not inside."
The release continued, "GCPD was informed that at approximately 2:40 a.m., Guillen was admitted to Emory St. Joseph's Hospital in Sandy Springs with gunshot wounds. Guillen was later transported to Grady Memorial Hospital, where he is in critical condition."
According to GCPD, "The (GCPD) Criminal Investigation Division is actively following up on this case. At this time, the suspect is being charged with False Imprisonment of the female, as well as two counts of Aggravated Assault for the female and the officer."
John's Creek
The John's Creek Police Department (JCPD) requested the GBI investigate an officer involved shooting near the Bliss Bar and Lounge on Medlock Bridge Road.
Witnesses at the scene report that a vehicle driven by a woman identified as Yasmine Mbi, 30, hit two women in the parking lot.
GBI reports that the officer fired at Mbi's vehicle as she drove towards the officer. The vehicle was later found at an unrelated location and JCPD arrested Mbi shortly afterwards at her residence for Aggravated Assault and Hit and Run. Mbi did not receive any injuries during the incident.
The two women victims The two females were transported to a local hospital; one with serious injuries from being struck by the vehicle and the other female with minor injuries.
Screven County
On Friday, the Georgia State Patrol (GSP) requested the GBI investigate an officer involved shooting in Screven County near Savannah, according to a GBI press release.
Preliminary reports show a trooper tried to stop a Nissan Sentra for a traffic related offense. The car refused to stop and led the trooper on a brief chase down several county roads. The trooper used a Precision Intervention Technique to force the stop and the Sentra stopped in a ditch.
During the incident, "the trooper fired one round, striking Julian Edward Roosevelt Lewis, age 60. Lewis was pronounced deceased on scene," the GBI said.
An autopsy will be conducted at the GBI Crime Lab.
©2020 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. CNN contributed to the story.
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