The GBI is investigating an officer-involved shooting that followed a police chase, which started in Alabama and ended near Fort Benning on Monday.
Just before 3 a.m., Phenix City (Ala.) police officers tried to pull over a red Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck, the GBI said in a news release. Johnny Marshall Slocum, 46, was the driver, and he initially stopped his truck before allegedly driving away.
Russell County (Ala.) deputies joined the chase, which eventually entered Columbus on Victory Drive, the release said. At that point, Phenix City police stopped chasing Slocum, and only two Russell County deputies continued the pursuit.
Slocum drove east on U.S. 280 through Columbus and into Fort Benning before reversing course and driving east on the highway, which is when Chattahoochee County deputies joined the pursuit, the release said. The chase eventually ended when Slocum exited onto Custer Road and hit a barricade set up across the exit ramp.
Officer-involved shootings in 2019
The shooting is the 29th of 2019, according to the GBI, which investigates most officer involved shootings. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution also tracks officer-involved shootings that don't involve the GBI, and those numbers sometimes differ from the GBI's tally.
Deputies surrounded his damaged truck, and when Slocum allegedly began backing up the vehicle toward deputies, both Chattahoochee County and Russell County deputies fired at him, the release said. He was hit once, and his truck was struck multiple times.
Slocum’s condition was not released, but he was taken to Piedmont Columbus Regional Hospital. No deputies were hurt during the incident.
This is the 28th officer-involved shooting investigation the GBI has opened in 2019. The last such investigation was opened two weeks ago after a Union City police officer was injured in a shooting that left a man dead.
MORE: GBI identifies Union City police officer wounded in shootout
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