Police fatally shot a man accused of trespassing at a busy Lawrenceville fast-food restaurant Wednesday after he attacked an officer with a chair, authorities said.
The Lawrenceville officer was attempting to get the man, identified Thursday by the GBI as 47-year-old Albert Lee Hughes, to leave a Wendy’s on Scenic Highway when an altercation ensued.
Customers told Channel 2 Action News he came into the restaurant holding a beer and argued with employees before police were called.
When he was approached about 5:30 p.m., Hughes started attacking the officer with a chair, GBI spokeswoman Nelly Miles said. The officer then fell to the floor.
“The officer discharged his Taser in an attempt to stop the attack,” Miles said in a news release. “The Taser was not effective. Hughes continued to attack the officer with the chair while the officer was on the ground.”
At some point during the scuffle, the officer fired his service weapon, she said. Witnesses said the man was shot in the chest, Channel 2 reported.
“The officer dispatched the weapon twice,” said witness Derek Williams, who told the news station he was sitting feet away from Hughes and the struggling officer. “The man wouldn’t stop and tried to hit him again and then the officer discharged it a third time.”
Hughes was taken to a hospital, where he died.
The officer, who was not identified, was also taken to a hospital with minor injuries and has since been discharged, Miles said.
The restaurant remained closed until about 1:30 p.m. Thursday.
The GBI is looking into the officer-involved shooting, the third such investigation the agency has opened this year.
Police said body camera footage of the incident is not being released while the investigation continues.
Gwinnett court records show that Hughes had been arrested at least seven times in the past 20 years, charged with 19 different crimes ranging from loitering to burglary and aggravated assault, Channel 2 reported.
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