State investigators released more details Thursday in an officer-involved shooting that injured a man accused of consuming alcohol before he pointed a rifle toward an officer in the Butts County city of Jackson.
The injured man was identified as 52-year-old Thomas Lagano, and the officer was identified as Kevin Hill, Georgia Bureau of Investigation spokesman Joe Wooten said in a news release.
Jackson police responded to a call about a domestic dispute allegedly involving Lagano around 3:20 p.m. Wednesday in the 210 block of James Moore Drive, about 50 miles southeast of Atlanta.
Lagano’s wife, Linda Lagano, told the officers her husband was belligerent and had been recently consuming alcohol, Wooten said.
Thomas Lagano watched officers from a garage area on the residence, then retreated back inside the home before returning out the front door and pointing a firearm in the air, Wooten said.
“Officer Kevin Hill gave Thomas multiple commands to drop the firearm, and he did not comply,” Wooten said. “Instead, Thomas lowered the firearm toward Officer Hill, and Officer Hill fired one round from his service weapon striking Thomas.”
The local police department asked the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to look into the shooting.
Jackson Police Chief James Morgan earlier told Channel 2 Action News he had hoped the department could get through the incident, as with any incident, without having to fire a weapon but the man shot did not comply with officers.
“They ordered him to put the weapon down,” Morgan said. “He refused.”
Thomas Lagano was air lifted to Grady Memorial Hospital, where he is being treated for his injuries.
The officer involved in the incident will remain on administrative leave during the state’s independent investigation, which is customary.
When the investigation is complete, the matter will be turned over to the Towaliga Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office.
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