A veteran Covington police officer shot a sword-carrying man in the chest Wednesday after the man made an “aggressive move” toward him, Lt. Paul Dailey said.
“I’m sure he is critical,” said Dailey of the man who was being operated on at Grady Memorial Hospital.
It was the first officer-involved shooting for the 53-officer department in the past few years, Dailey told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The suspect was identified as Julian Leon Faulkner, 44. He was shot after an unnamed officer responded to reports that a man was walking down Legion Drive with a samurai- or medieval-type sword, Dailey said.
The first officer to arrive confronted Faulkner and told him to drop the weapon. The suspect then charged the officer with the sword over his head in an attempt to strike the officer, police said.
The officer retreated behind his car and Faulkner followed with the sword and was shot “center mass” when he again moved aggressively at the officer, Dailey said.
“Once the suspect was shot, the suspect went to his knees, still not following commands to surrender the weapon,” Dailey said.
A second officer then arrived on the scene within about a half-minute, and the two officers disarmed and handcuffed Faulkner, Dailey said.
Witnesses described Faulkner “flailing around” with the sword while walking down the road, Dailey said. He was unsure whether Faulkner had a criminal record.
The department, in accordance with its policy, called in the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to probe the shooting.
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