HENRY COUNTY, Georgia -- Two Henry County police officers were shot Thursday morning and a suspected gunman has barricaded himself inside a Stockbridge home, police said.
Officers responded to a home along Eagle Way about 10:45 a.m.
Henry police Capt. Joey Smith said “another potential civilian victim” was inside the home, but he could not confirm their condition. Channel 2 Action News is reporting that at least one person is dead inside the home.
The two officers were taken to Grady Memorial Hospital in serious condition, police said, one by ground and one by air.
Police activity had most lanes of I-75 South blocked before Hudson Bridge Road as the wounded officers were taken to the hospital.
All lanes are now open, but heavy delays remain in both directions.
Eagle Way is located near Red Oak and Flippen roads in Stockbridge, not far from the interstate. There is a large police presence in the neighborhood as officers from several nearby jurisdictions, including Jonesboro and Clayton County, have responded to the scene.
Residents are asked to stay away from the area.
Thursday’s shooting comes just days after a Union City police officer was shot multiple times Monday evening after responding to a home on Stonewall Drive. Officer Jerome Turner Jr. is stable and recovering at Grady after undergoing surgery, police said.
It was the second time in four months a Henry County officer was shot in the line of duty. On Dec. 6, Officer Michael Smith was shot while trying to subdue a man outside a dental office. Smith, 33, died from his injuries Dec. 28.
Six Georgia officers died in the line of duty in 2018, including four in metro Atlanta. Smith was the second Henry officer to die in 2018. In February, Locust Grove police Officer Chase Maddox was shot and killed while assisting deputies serving a warrant.
So far this year, one Georgia officer has been killed in the line of duty. On Jan. 29, Glascock County Deputy Joshua Ryer Jr. was killed in a two-vehicle crash while on the way to pick up an inmate. The 19-year-old had been with the department for five months.
Henry County students and teachers are on spring break this week and no schools are affected by the police presence.
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