The Lula man who died Friday in a standoff with sheriff’s deputies was a suspect in the stabbing death of a Hall County man the day before.
Jason Foreman, 45, exchanged gunfire with deputies and died during the Friday afternoon standoff at a residence on Melinda Drive in Barrow County. On Saturday, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation was still trying to determine if Foreman killed himself or was killed by a deputy who returned fire.
The chain of events that led to Foreman’s death began at about 6 p.m. Thursday, when Hall County deputies responded to a report of shots fired on Cagle Road. They found 32-year-old Jessie Weber, who had been stabbed in the chest.
Weber was transported to Northeast Georgia Medical Center. He underwent surgery, but died later that evening. The DeKalb County Medical Examiner will conduct an autopsy.
Investigators are still determining the circumstances that led to Weber’s death. But Hall County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Nicole Bailes said Weber and Foreman were acquaintances, and Foreman had active murder warrants in connection with Weber’s death.
The Hall County Sheriff’s Office gathered information that Foreman might be at the Melinda Drive residence in Barrow County, and deputies arrived on the scene at about 3 p.m. Friday. As they approached, Bailes said Foreman fired at them, and one Hall County deputy was struck. The deputy was treated for a “superficial” wound and released.
Another deputy returned fire at Foreman before the deputies retreated and called the Barrow County Sheriff’s Office and Hall County SWAT team to respond, Bailes said. After some time of attempted negotiations, a GBI robot verified that Foreman was dead.
One Hall County deputy has been placed on administrative leave pending the GBI’s investigation, which is ongoing.
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