An Aiken Public Safety Officer was shot and killed Tuesday night during a traffic stop, according to a news report from television station WLTX-TV. A second officer was also injured in the shooting and is hospitalized.
The officer, Scotty Richardson, 33, had worked with the Aiken Public Safety for 12 years, according to the television station. He leaves behind a wife and three young children.
The second officer, Travis Griffin, 28, was also shot in the incident, but his bulletproof vest apparently saved his life, according to the television station.
According to an article published by The Augusta Chronicle, one of the officers was treated and released while the other officer, who at the time was unnamed, was flown to Medical College of Georgia Hospital and Clinics and listed in “very critical condition” with a gunshot wound to the head.
The suspect in the shooting, according to the newspaper was taken to the MCG with a gunshot to his buttocks.
The shooting happened at about 9 p.m. at the Pace’s Run Apartments in Aiken, according to the newspaper, which also reported that about a dozen shots were heard at the Aiken Rescue headquarters which is downtown.
The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division has been brought in to help, which is standard procedure for all officer shootings, the newspaper reported.
