A search for a Rockdale County homicide suspect Monday afternoon ended in a shootout with deputies in South Georgia, authorities said.
Joyce Marie Lewis-Pelzer, 42, was injured after shots were fired toward Crisp County deputies, and the deputies returned fire, according to the GBI. She was taken to a hospital in Cordele, where she was listed in serious but stable condition Tuesday.
Lewis-Pelzer was wanted in connection with a deadly stabbing at a Motel 6 in Conyers on Monday morning, the GBI said. Conyers police issued a lookout for the woman and her vehicle for law enforcement agencies along I-75. Investigators believed she was headed for Florida.
A Georgia State Patrol trooper spotted the vehicle about 3:15 p.m. in Crisp County, setting off a pursuit down I-75 that crossed into Turner County, the GBI said in a news release. Turner County is about 80 miles south of Macon and 160 miles southeast of downtown Atlanta.
The trooper tried twice to position his cruiser to stop the speeding vehicle, commonly known as a PIT maneuver. On the second attempt, the vehicle came to a stop, and the two Crisp County deputies approached.
At least one shot was fired from inside Lewis-Pelzer’s vehicle, according to the GBI. The agency did not describe the nature of the woman’s injuries but said one of the deputies was medically trained and was able to render aid until emergency personnel arrived.
No officers were injured.
According to Channel 2 Action News, Conyers investigators have evidence that connects Lewis-Pelzer and her car to the stabbing at the Motel 6. Further details on the homicide were not released.
The incident in Turner County is the 86th officer-involved shooting the GBI has been called to investigate this year, GBI spokeswoman Nelly Miles said. In 2017, the agency opened 88 officer-involved shooting investigations.
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