GBI: Cops in South Georgia fatally shoot man armed with knife during wellness check

Police were sent to the area for a wellness check but found the man holding a knife.

Police were sent to the area for a wellness check but found the man holding a knife.

A man was shot to death by police in South Georgia on Tuesday after authorities said he pulled a knife on an officer during a wellness check.

Donald Myers, 48, died at a hospital after he was shot by a Ray City police officer in Berrien County, according to the GBI.

The incident happened about 6:45 p.m. at a location on Pauline Avenue, the GBI said in a statement. Officers were sent to the area for a wellness check, but when they arrived they found Myers holding a knife.

Investigators said Myers “approached the officers with the knife, and the officers shot Myers.” The officers then performed first aid until emergency medical services arrived at the scene, the GBI said.

No officers were injured in the incident, and no other details were released.

Myers was rushed to South Georgia Medical Center in Valdosta, but did not survive. His body will be taken to the GBI Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy.

The shooting remains under investigation.

It’s the 35th shooting involving a police officer the GBI has been asked to investigate this year and the 17th that ended in death. The AJC also tracks officer-involved shootings that don’t involve the GBI, and those numbers sometimes differ from the GBI’s tally.