A 21-year-old man who Coweta County sheriff's deputies shot and killed during a traffic stop Wednesday had 10 outstanding warrants, officials said.
Michael Johnson allegedly punched a pregnant woman and pushed her to the ground on May 10 and was wanted on a battery charge, Coweta County Sheriff Mike Yeager said Thursday.
It was not Johnson’s first brush with the law.
He was wanted on three counts of aggravated assault with a weapon after an April 23 incident. And authorities issued warrants for his arrest after he allegedly stole a credit card and went on a shopping spree on June 19, 2015. He was wanted on one count of armed robbery and five counts of financial transaction fraud in connection with that incident.
Coweta sheriff’s Maj. Tony Grant told Channel 2 Action News a deputy recognized Johnson when he pulled over a car Wednesday. Johnson was a passenger in the vehicle.
At some point during that stop, Johnson got out and began running.
“The officer commanded him to stop,” Grant said.
He instead pulled out a gun and fired six rounds, hitting the passenger side of the officer’s car five times, Grant said.
One officer took cover as Johnson started shooting while others ran after him, according to Channel 2.
Johnson allegedly ran into a wood line bordering a Toyota car dealership.
“He was cornered, commanded to stop,” Grant said. “He fired again at the officers. They returned fire.”
Johnson’s girlfriend and her baby were inside his car during the shooting, but they were not injured.
His sister told the television station the shooting did not make sense.
“What am I supposed to do?” Mina Johnson asked. “What am I supposed to do?”
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is looking into the shooting.
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