As a 16-year-old, Khuong Thai traveled with his mother and older brother to their new home in America, in search of a better life. He thrived.
Thai completed high school, served in the Army Reserves and joined the Atlanta Police Department in 2019. He supported his ailing mother while his brother attended college out of state, according to his family.
Today, Thai’s family is thankful he’s alive. He was shot in the face and shoulder on June 30 in a Midtown Atlanta apartment building when he and a fellow officer arrived to investigate a shooting. Officers returned fire, killing Joseph Lee Humbles, 29, of Atlanta, according to investigators.
Credit: Atlanta police
Credit: Atlanta police
“He never had a chance to protect himself,” Thanh Nhi, Thai’s aunt, posted on a GoFundMe page. “Thankfully, his fellow law enforcement family and the incredible doctors at Grady Hospital saved his life.” Thai is 23.
Humbles shot another person prior to the officers’ arrival, GBI spokeswoman Nelly Miles said. That victim was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. When Thai and the other officer stepped out of an elevator to investigate that shooting, they were “ambushed,” Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said afterward.
“The two officers were able to return fire, which struck Humbles,” GBI spokeswoman Nelly Miles said. “Humbles died as a result of his injuries.”
Joseph Humbles’ uncle questions authorities’ account of events.
“We don’t know what happened,” Jeff Humbles said.
Aside from a marijuana charge a few years back, his 29-year-old nephew stayed out of trouble, he said.
“Joseph was a good kid,” he said. “He was never a criminal. He never ran in a gang.”
Credit: Ben Gray
Credit: Ben Gray
Thai was seriously injured but was alert and able to communicate with frightened colleagues and family members.
“It is only through their training and by the grace of God that these officers did not come upon a more tragic situation,” APD Chief Rodney Bryant said.
At a news conference the day after the shooting, Bryant praised the officers from surrounding agencies who rushed to the scene to help. Officers pulled Thai out of an elevator before carrying him from the building.
“This is one of the most heroic events I’ve seen in the police department and I’ve seen many,” Bryant said. “These officers clearly did not have an understanding of what all the threats were, but they recognized that they needed to assist their fellow police.”
The incident happened two weeks after the death of another metro Atlanta officer. On June 16, Holly Springs Officer Joe Burson was dragged by a suspect’s vehicle during a traffic stop. Burson shot and killed the suspect, but died from his injuries, the fourth Georgia officer killed in the line of duty this year. He was 24.
The shooting that injured Thai wasn’t the first time an APD officer was badly wounded on the job.
In July 2009, former Det. Patrick Apoian was dragged by a car and run over by a fleeing suspect. Apoian, now 50, remembers being on the ground, knowing he had countless broken bones and worried he was bleeding internally.
“You’re literally sitting there going, ‘Is this it? Is this the end?’” he said.
He called his then 6-year-old son to say goodbye that night. Then everything around him went eerily quiet, despite officers and a firefighter tending to him, he recalled. He remembers a fellow officer yelling in his ear, and suddenly Apoian knew he would survive.
“You’re not going anywhere,” he thought to himself that night. “No one is raising your son but you.”
Credit: Jennifer Brett
Credit: Jennifer Brett
After numerous surgeries and physical therapy, Apoian was able to return to policing. But being injured in the line of duty was devastating both physically and emotionally. Apoian felt forced to retire, and because of his injuries, lost wages and a portion of his pension.
“It’s a very, very bitter pill to swallow,” he said. “The hardest thing to deal with is you’re no longer to assist the people who are victims of crime.”
Credit: Henri Hollis
Credit: Henri Hollis
After hearing about the shooting that injured Thai, Apoian said he had restless nights, worried about the officer while reliving his own life-changing injuries. Apoian felt the same tension in May 2020, when Officer Max Brewer was hit by a man riding an ATV.
“You drive to black it out, but there are a lot of sleepless nights and it brings a lot back to the surface,” Apoian said.
During the second night of protests that erupted nationwide following the murder of George Floyd by a former Minneapolis police officer, Atlanta police officers and members of the Georgia National Guard were deployed to help control the protests.
As Brewer stood directing traffic, a man riding an ATV was driving back and forth through the intersection of Marietta and Spring streets. The ATV sped into Brewer, shattering both of his legs and causing other injuries.
A total of 87 APD officers have been killed in the line of duty, according to the Officers Down Memorial Page.
Like the fallen officers, Thai is a hero, his brother said in a social media tribute.
“On this very Independence Day, I want to say your willingness to do the right things in challenging times, even if you have to sacrifice, reminds me of the spirit of the Founding Fathers,” Phuc Thai wrote in the public post. “The desire to serve and protect others is what you and they have in common.”
Thai remains in the hospital and faces several surgeries, his family has said.
By late Thursday, the online fundraising page reached more than $97,000 in donations. Some donors posted words of encouragement to the young officer.
“Thank you for your bravery and service to our country and to the city of Atlanta,” one woman wrote. “Your courage makes our lives safer. God bless you.”
Now, it’s Thai thanking others for the support he has received, including financial donations.
“Thanks to best wishes and donations for Khuong Thai, my family does believe that miracles happen in real life,” Nhi posted online. “From the bottom of his heart, Khuong wants to say thank you. Love you all!”
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