A Drug Enforcement Administration agent shot two people who were inside a vehicle that accelerated toward him and other law enforcement personnel during a traffic stop in Calhoun, officials said Wednesday.
At about 11:40 p.m. Tuesday, local, state and federal drug task force agents were conducting an investigation and pulled over a vehicle on Outlet Center Drive, according to the GBI. The law enforcement agencies included Calhoun police and the DEA.
During the stop, one person drove toward several officers who were trying to make an arrest, the GBI said. The driver then made an “intentional attempt to strike (the DEA agent) head-on,” Calhoun police Chief Tony Pyle said in a statement.
“(The) DEA agent fired multiple shots at the car, hitting the male driver and female occupant,” the GBI said.
Both occupants were taken to local hospitals, with the woman being flown to one, according to the state agency. Their conditions were not released.
Pyle said the FBI has “assumed responsibility” of the investigation. FBI spokesperson Tony Thomas confirmed the federal agency and GBI were both looking into the gunfire, but he would not comment further, citing the active investigation.
Pyle said the stop was initiated by one of his marked units and “from our agency’s perspective all actions taken were within policy.”
“All of our personnel are safe, and no local officers were injured during the incident,” the chief added.
In a statement Wednesday afternoon, the DEA confirmed its agents were involved in the shooting and were uninjured.
“We take violence against our agents and partners extremely seriously,” a spokesperson said. “The matter is under investigation, and therefore we will not be making any additional comments at this time.”
The incident comes nearly two weeks after a man, who was a suspect in a Tennessee homicide, fired shots at a Calhoun police officer outside a Buc-ee’s in the city, which is about 70 miles northwest of downtown Atlanta.
Police said Robert Smith, 35, of Cookeville, Tennessee, carjacked a vehicle in the Buc-ee’s parking lot on Union Grove Road on April 17 and fatally shot himself after leading law enforcement on a chase on I-75. No officers were injured during the shooting.
According to the Nashville Police Department, Smith was accused of shooting 23-year-old Cassidy Jackson to death in Hermitage on April 11. She was found shot in the head after being reported missing by her family, police said.
The GBI continues to investigate Tuesday’s shooting on Outlet Center Drive. Once completed, the findings will be given to Gordon County District Attorney Erle Newton III’s office for review.
The incident marked the 24th officer-involved shooting the GBI has been asked to investigate in 2025. At the same time last year, the state agency had looked into 21 such shootings.
— Please return to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution for updates.
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